Remarks on the science of history ..

iQl-

I LIBRARY OF CONGRKSS. |

# / #

# 0

I UNITRD STATES OF AMERICA. J

REMARKS

7

ON THE

SCIENCE OF HISTORY

FOLLOWED BY AN
A PRIORI

ia.®!f®[Ba®iB[Eia.[p[a¥

/'J ^4.-^.fet..*^?.."'

. ^

BOSTON:
WM. CROSBY AND H. P. NICHOLS.

Ill WASHINGTON STREET.

1849.

J

^

Entered according to Act of Congress, in the year 1848, by

Wm. Crosby, and H. P. Nichols,
In the Clerk's Office of the District Court of Massachusetts.

TO

REPUBLICAN AND PHILOSOPHER,

THIS VOLUME

IS RESPECTFULLY INSCRIBED,

BY THE AUTHOR.

REMARKS ON THE

The Series by Nines.

Desire, according to Buchez, the first Pres-
ident of the present French National Assen)-
bly, is a naoveraent of the will, an outbreak,
and energetic operation, of the active principle, to-
ward something we have not as yet.

When we do not understand our desire, we are
conscious of uneasiness, doubt, and trouble : as
soon however as the intelligence begins to com-

* The materials requisite for the construction of the
*' Remarks" and " Autobiography" contained in this book,
may be found in the works of Jacob Boehme, Fabre
d'OLivET and P. J. B. Buchez :^ — The Author takes,
therefore, this opportunity to protest against being inden-
tified, in the mind of any reader, with the hero of the sup-
posed Autobiography.

VI REMARKS ON THE

prebend the blind appetency, a fornaula for it
rises to ibe mind, and it becomes transformed at
once into acceptation, hope, determinate volition,
aspiration in view of an ideal, a conviction, a form
of faith, a belief, &c. — U becomes moreover a thesis
proposed for reasoning. Thus the movement for
the comprehension of a desire, may be consid-
ered as containing the progress and completion of
a distinct event, viz. the acquisition of a clearly
defined sentiment ; and, for this reason, that
movement may be subdivided as follows : (1)
The appetency, or longing tendency, toward
something we do not possess, and of whose na-
ture we have no clear apprehension, (2) The
reasoning we institute within ourselves to discover
the origin of our uneasiness — to discover also the
object which is necessary for the satisfaction of
our desires, (3) The full and conscious act of
desire, which is the operation of instinctive ten-
dencies, with an open knowledge of the object
desired.

The progress of any event, in which men
are actors, takes place always in three stages :
the first is the great epoch of Desire, which is
subdivided, as we have seen, into three sub
epochs ; the second is the great epoch of Rea-
soning, wherein are discovered the ways and

SCIENCE OF HISTORY. vii

means by which the object necessary in order
to the gratification of desire, may be obtained ;
and the last is the great epoch of Execution
or Realization. The epochs of Reasoning and
Execution, are, like that of Desire, each of ihem
subdivided into three sub epochs — as shall be
fully exemplified in the sequel.

These three Grand Epochs, each of which is
composed of three sub epochs, form, when taken
together, the great Logical Series by Nines, the
series of Buchez.*-

No example, in illustration of the movement of
this series, would carry so much conviction to the
mind of the reader, as one that could be verified
by each individual from his own private experi-
ence : such an example is possible for us, for the
ordinary process of a religious experience, lends
itself very readily for the purposes of scientific in-
vestigation, and, moreover, fulfills the requisite
conditions. To test, therefore, the correctness of
the serial order and movement, we will proceed to
construct, by the a priori methods, a sort of im-

*Introduction to the Science of History, by P. J.
B. BucHEZ.— 2 vols. 8 mo. Paris, 1842.

VIU REMARKS ON THE

aginary spiritual Autobiography. And we shall
take the liberty, for the sake of securing facility
of composition, and avoiding circumlocution, to
commence at once by speaking in the first
person. —

The method of writing universal history under
the form of a biography, and of writing biography
under the forms of universal history, is philosoph-
ically correct.

As it was necessary for the race to go through
the Mosaic dispensation, in order to become pre-
pared for the reception of Christianity, so it was
necessary for it to go through the Patriarchal dis-
pensation, in order to become prepared for the re-
ligion revealed through Moses. In like manner,
in the experience of the private Christian, the un-
derstanding of the Old Testament must pave the
way for the understanding of the New. Every
thing moves forward in regular progressions. He
who thoroughly understands the present epoch,
must have reproduced, and lived through, in his
private experience, all the religions, dispensations,
aud civilisations, that preceded it.

Ralph Waldo Emerson, who has made a thor-
ough study of this subject, says, in his remarkable

SCIENCE OF HISTORY. IX

essay on History : '' There is a relation between
" the hours of life, and the centuries of time. —
'' All inquiry into antiquity, — all curiosity re-
'' specting the pyramids, the excavated cities,
'' Stonehenge, the Ohio circles, Mexico, Mem-
'' phis, is the desire to do away this wild, pre -
'^ posterous There or Then, and introduce in its
'' place the Here and the Now. It it to banish
'' the not mc, and supply the me ... . Belzo-
'^ ni digs and measures in the mummy pits and
"pyramids of Thebes, until he can see an end
*' of the difference between the monstrous work
'' and himself. When he has satisfied himself^
'' in general and in detail, that it was made by
" such a person as himself, so armed and so mo-
" lived, and to ends to which he himself in given
'* circumstances should also have worked, his
" problem is then solved .... Every step in
" private experience, flashes a light on what
'' great bodies of men have done, and the crises
" in individual life, refer to national crises. . . .
^^ Every revolution was first a thought in one
'' man's mind, and when the same thought occurs
'^ to another man, it is the key to that era. Ev-
'' ery reform was once a private opinion, and
" when it shall be a private opinion again, it will
'' solve the problem of the age .... We, as
" we read, must become Greeks, Romans, Turks,

X REMARKS ON THE

*^ priest and king, martyr and executioner, must
" fasten these images to some reality in our se-
'' cret experience, or we shall see nothing, learn
^' nothing, keep nothing .... The student is
'' to read history actively and not passively, to
*' esteem his own life the text, and books, the
'' commentary."

Jacob Boehme indicates, in his table of the Ten
Forms of Fire, the most abstract movement of the
series by nines. It is necessary that we should
subjoin this table, dividing it off into epochs, ac-
cording to the principles of Buchez :

The ten Forms of Fire.*

Point of Departure.

I'oRM 1. The Eternal Liberty (having, and itself being,
the Will) signified by Shem,

* See Notes A and B.

SCIENCE OF HISTORY. XI

First Grand Epoch. [Desire.]

Form 2. The being Desirous, signified by Arphaxad.

Form 3. The sharp Drawing, causing the opposite Will,
signified by Salah,

Form 4. The Flash, or Lightning, caused by the Lib-
erty, and causing the Anguish, signified by
Eber.

Second Grand Epoch. [Reasoning.]

Form 5. Eternal Nature, or Great Mystery, whence the
two Kingdoms proceed, signified by Peleg.

Form 6. The two Principles of Fire (substance) and
Light (manifestation), signified by Regu.

Form 7. The Magia (self-acting Power) making its own

Looking-Glass (self-consciousness :) as Life

is of Fire and Water, signified by Serug.

Third Grand Epoch. [Realization,]

Form 8. The Turba that breaks the Outward Life,

Strength and Omnipotence, signified by

Nahor.

Form 9. The Virgin Tincture : Love Fire : Life of

Angels and Holy Souls, signified by Terah.

Form 10. The Entrance into the Holy Ternary, corpo-

rising of Angels and Holy Souls, signified

by Abram,

This table will be fully explained in the Auto-
biography which follows.

4

AN A PRIORI

□ri' © B E © (S IE .

FIRST GRAND EPOCH. [dESIRE.]

First sub epoch : — that of desire in desire.

I was accustomed to attend church regularly. I
became impressed, after a while, with the tenor of
the preaching, and desired to be regenerated — to
come into communion with God. — This sub
epoch was characterised by a sentiment of dissat-
isfaction, a vague want of something, a desire af-
ter the Divine Life, while, in truth, I had many
doubts as to whether any Living God existed.
I wished to be regenerated, but questioned within
myself whether the whole theory of religion were
not the mere invention of some wonderful man,
who promulgated it, not for any truth it contained,
but on account of the benefits he conceived it

would bring to the world.

1

2 AN A PRIORI

I read Lowth on Hebrew Poetry, the effect of
which was to make me desire very earnestly to
obtain that state of spirituality which was possess-
ed by the Hebrew Prophets. I endeavored^
therefore, willed earnestly (as a magnetizer wills
when he wishes to put a patient to sleep,) to re-
ceive the Spirit, to be converted: so great were
:my efforts, and so unintermitting, that my physi-
cal system became deranged. I woke up once
in the night, under a strong nervous excitement,
and thought I saw tongues of fire hovering over
the coverlet, like those which descended upon the
apostles on the day of Pentecost.

I had a tooth-ache some days after this, and
finding myself in a moment of faith, prayed to be
relieved, on the strength of the promise in the
gospel to the prayer of faith; and was immediate-
ly relieved. I prayed suddenly — before the ac-
cess of belief could have time to pass away, and
give place to doubt — and was relieved suddenly:
this strengthened me very much.

I was engaged, about this time, on a matter of
business that would secure me a considerable and
permanent income, if I could bring it to a favor-
able conclusion. Success, however, depended
on so many contingencies beyond my control,

AUTOBIOGRAPHY. §

that 1 became altogether bewildered, and did not
know what to do. At last a sermon in which
Jacob's prayer was quoted, threw some light on
my difficulties, — '^ Jacob vowed a vow, saying,
if God will be with me, and will keep me in this
way that I go, and will give me bread to eat, and
raiment to put on, so that I come again to my
father's house in peace, then shall the Lord be
my God: and this stone which I have set up for
a pillar, shall be God's house: and of all that He
will give me, I will surely give a tenth unto him."
I also vowed a vow, in imitation of Jacob's, say-
ing— If God will cause me to prosper in this bu-
siness in which I am now engaged, I will devote
to his service, year by year, one tenth of the per"
manent income I shall derive from it; and if he
will regenerate me, and change my heart, then the
Lord shall be my God.

Remembering that the Lord always makes use
of means, I took what I considered proper meas-
ures for ensuring the success of my designs; nev-
ertheless, the whole matter miscarried, and fell
through. But this was what I had expected, for
my faith this time was strong. I said God has
done this to try me; for, if all had gone off
easily, I should have supposed I had by my own
shrewdness, accomplished the work; and thus I

4 AN A PRIORI

should have been led to despise my vow: now,
however, if the Lord sees fit to retrieve my af-
fairs, I shall discern his hand in the work, and
shall know he has accepted my vow, fulfilling on
his part the conditions of the first clause of the
covenant. And behold, in a few days, at the
first efibrt I made, all came out according to my
wish.

Oiilsilliio

Second sub epoch : — that of reasoning in desire.

As the first stage is characterised by vague
desire, so this stage is characterised by reasoning
to render the desire no longer vague, but clear,
and well defined, tending toward a known object.

In the course of reasoning instituted to dis-
cover the object of my desire, viz. the Living
God, I laid down, at starting, the postulates which
follow: (1) God is just, (2) God is absolute. I
felt I could not love God, and thus come into
communion with him, without first obtaining a
knowledge of his existence, and, to a certain ex-
tent, of his character. But a war broke out be-
tween my postulates. The postulate, God is ab-
solute, gave birth to a perfect system of neces-
sity, and, if there was evil in the world, made

AUTOBIOGRAPHY. 5

God the author of it. I felt that God had given
me a certain character, according to his will; and
had placed me in certain circumstances, still ac-
cording to his will: this character, in concurrence
with these circumstances, occasioned certain ac-
tions which T acknowledged to be wrong. But
whose was the wrong? Mine? — Not at all: I
was a mere passive agent in the hands of God,
and if there was any wrong, it was attributable,
not to me, but to the cause that made me act.
But, says the Theologian, God will damn you if
you act contrary to his preceptive will. I answer:
— If, however, I act according to his determina-
tive will, is not his preceptive will absurd, if it
condemn my action? And, if I act according to
his determinative will, not being able indeed, to
do otherwise, being a mere passive instrument in
his hands, and he damn me for violating his pre-
ceptive will — which he knows I cannot obey, ani
which he himself rendered it impossible for me to
obey — is he not unjust?

I tried to reconcile this difficulty by supposing
I might have been free in some former state of
existence, from which I had fallen by my own
free act, and that God — in some mysterious way
which I could not understand, — was giving me a

chance for restoration, and that I ought, for this-
*1

AN A PRIORI

reason, to be thankful for existence without free-
dom. For still I sought communion with God,
and it was my earnest desire to justify his ways.
— This hypothesis was a mere reproduction of the
doctrine which prevailed throughout India, Egypt,
and Greece, in the second sub epoch of the first
grand epoch of the world's history — the stage of
reasoning in desire. This movement is half-shown,
and half-concealed, in the doctrine of Plato that
all our true knowledge is reminiscence — recollec-
tion of knowledge we possessed in some pre-exist-
ing state from which we have fallen: also in his
argument for the immortality of the soul, based
on the same dogma of pre-existing life. The doc-
trine that this world is a purgatory^ and that men
are a race of fallen angels, pervaded all antiquity:
but the world has moved forward since then, and
the hypothesis satisfied me for a moment only.

What proof is there (I then proceeded to in-
quire) that there is any God at all? The argu-
ment from design proves nothing, for when we say
we see design^ .we beg the whole question ; for,
without doubt, design implies a designer. Perhaps
the powers of Nature are adequate to the pro-
duction of all the means adapted to ends which
we discover in the universe. But, asks the
Theologian, w^ho made Nature? We answer^

AUTOBIOGRAPHY. 7

who made God? If Nature be wonderful, and
for that reason must have been produced, how
much more wonderful is God! We always have
to go back to that which is self-existing: and no
one denies that there is something which is self-
existing ; but the question always presents itself:
— Is this self-existing something alive, creative,
providential, self-conscious? or is it a blind force
that acts always according to immutable Law?
Without doubt, matter is unlimited in extent, and,
in this sense, infinite; and the forces of Nature
mould it into an innumerable number of worlds.
Would it be at all astonishing if, from the univer-
sal dice-box, out of an innumerable number of
throws, there should be thrown out one world in-
fiinitely perfect? Nay, does not the calculus of
probabilities prove to us that one such world out
of an infinite number, must be produced of ne-
cessity? This world is indeed very far from be-
ing perfect. But, answers the Theologian, we
have no issue here; for you acknowledge God,
since you ascribe to Chance the attributes of God.
Very well, I reply, but why darken counsel with
words without knov»'ledge? — the question is this.
Is Chance — or God, if you are pleased so to call
it J alive, providential? The God of the Theolo-
gians is not only creative, be is also alive, intelli-
gent, good, self-conscious, just, &c. The evi-

8 AN A PRIORI

dence from Nature, of the divine existence, did
not seem to me to be conclusive; and that from
the testimony and miracles of inspired men, seem-
ed more than unsatisfactory. If God is good, I
questioned, and has made a belief in him to be
essential to our salvation, why has he not mani-
fested himself more clearly to his creatures?
Why has he made belief to depend upon evi-
dence, and yet have given so few indications of
his existence.

This, I argued, is the conclusion of the whole
matter: God — if he really exist — is good, alive,
self-conscious, and governs all things according to
his benevolent and holy providence; but the w^orld
shows no indications of such a benevolent and
holy Providence. This earth appears to be a
hell, or at best a planet condemned — a sort of
purgatory; it is filled with violence, tyranny and
injustice, and yet God, if he exist, is absolute
sovereign, and has willed that things should be as
they are! — Therefore there is no God.

Yet, I continued, if there be a Supreme Pow-
er [who is called God, though he violate constant-
ly the rule of immutable right] his name deserves
no reverence, and his power no respect. It be-
longs to him to damn me unjustly, and it belongs

AUTOBIOGEAPHY. 9

10 me to suffer the pains of Hell with fortitude,
protesting, in the dignity of conscious rectitude,
against the unholy usurpations of the tyrant of
heaven. These are our relative positions : and I
am in my true place, only when I exalt myself
in my opposition, postulating myself as the per-
sonal enemy of Almighty God. — But if some are
elected according to the Divine Foreknowledge,
from before the foundation of the world, to eter-
nal joy, and if these, led by self-interest, acqui-
esce in the decisions of Supreme Force, receiv-
ing an unending recompense in heavenly man-
sions— what then ? Why then, these elect are of
the earth, carnal, and while in heaven, will expe-
rience a heaven of the body, which they will ap-
preciate, but a brutifying hell of the soul, of which,
because of their earthly and unintelligent nature,
they will be unconscious : while we, who are
damned, will feel the corrosive fire in our outward
frames, but a serene heaven within. The elect
will be slaves, but the damned will be as Gods,
and their intense pain will but exalt their essential
diivnity. Moreover, if some of the brethren in
the Churches, and certain persons among the
teachers and superintendants of the Sunday
Schools, who seem to be in high repute in the
hingdom of heaven on earth, are to have like
positions of authority in the kingdom of heaven

10 AK A fRlOKI

above, I should undoubtedly request respectfully
to be permitted to go the other way. And I
must confess that if the heavenly state is to be an
infinite and uninterrupted orthodox prayer-meeting
[for this is what is held up upon earth as its sym^
bol] I have little or no taste for its enjoyments.

Having adopted these conclusions, I hoped
that no Living God existed, but had misgivings.
What was it most becoming in me, under the in-
fluence of these misgivings, to do ? Evidently
I must strengthen my soul, I must become inured
to pain, I must possess an unbending will, I must
train myself to bear infinite and unending pain ;
for, if God lived. I w^as sure of hell. If God
lived, hell was my choice. I therefore began to
train myself to mental and spiritual endurance : I
became stern, unbending, and proud of my self-
depending dignity.

At once, a whole theory of universal movement
presented itself to my mind. I regarded myself
as self-existing, though finite ; I regarded myself
as the true ground and origin of all my own forces,
and exalted myself as a god in the strength of my
own self-subsisting essence. I admitted, it is
true, that other men were gods also — at least
those of them who had internal force sufficient

AUTOBIOGRAPHY. 11

10 enable them to assert their divinity. Every
object in nature was a god, but each stood in its
own relative rank. 1 looked upon all things as
distinct and separate substances. I did not be-
lieve in one substance, of which each individual
partook ; but held that each individual thing was
a separate, self-existing substance by itself — and
a self-existing substance is a god, by universal
definition. To me, the forces seemed to inhere
in the various substances, and each seemed to act
from itself, by its[own power,, as a god. I believed
in no Supreme God, nor in any Divine Order,
but thought the universe to be one democratic re-
public, where each citizen (animate or inanimate)
did the thing that w^as right in its own eyes. The
Laws of nature were phenomena resulting from
the action of these independent powers, but were
nothing if considered in themselves. The uni-
verse being in operation, and all the powers ex-
erting an activity, an order would prevail which
would be a mere result of the prevalence of the
stronger powers, taken in connection with the
check which w^ould be put on their operation by
those which were weaker. Thus the order of
nature was — not something to be respected^ but
something to be created by individuals. The indi-
vidual was not to obey the order of nature, but to
act out its own will, and thus create that order.

12 AN A PRIORI

I felt myself to be a citizen of this republic, a god
acting fronri myself, in concurrence with gods act-
ing from themselves. I was capable of suffering,
and so were most of them — at least those were in
whom I was most interested. It behooved me,
therefore, to study their strength, that I might un-
dertake no contest in which I should be vanquish-
ed : and it certainly behooved them to respect me
^n like manner. We were all independent gods ;
and there was no right but strength, and no proof
of right but success. I was to respect them for
my own good, so far as not to undertake anything
in which I should miscarry ; but, whatever I did,
I did it from my own will, and for my own sov-
ereign good pleasure. There was no truth ex-
cept what some force made to be truth : and truth
changed as different powers obtained the ascen-
dency— for there were as many truths as there
were powers in the world. I had my truth, and,
in proportion to my ability, I imposed it upon
others. I was a god ; and, if I could have at-
tained to govern the whole universe, my will
would have been the rule of universal truth, —
what was the so called Supreme God, if not a be-
ing of the same order with myself, only transcend-
ently powerful ? At all events, my truth reached
as far as my power reached. Henceforth, I
would measure myself with any power which

AUTOBIOGRAPHY. 18

should bring what purported to be truth, and the
measure of power would be the measure of truth.
I made, therefore, my religion to accord with the
good pleasure of my will, and prepared to main-
tain it by force. The Supreme God, if he ex-
isted, could damn me in hell, and his power was
sufficient to keep me there : but he had no power
over my will. Here I could defy him. In hell,
the war between power and power would contin-
ue : my body would indeed be subdued, but in
my soul I would defy him. I would still retain
sovereignty in the sphere of the mind : for where
I had power to reign, there I was lawful sover-
eign.

I looked upon nature, and saw that all the un-
intelligent, and inanimate powers, were inexora-
ble. The sun attracted the planets exactly to the
extent of his attractive force, and the planets
obeyed just so far as they were obliged so to do ;
and they resisted in the exact measure they were
enabled to resist by their own centrifugal force.
All things exacted the full measure of their digni-
ty : they obeyed in resignation and silence when
the balance of force was against them, and ex-
acted obedience to the extreme measure of their
prevailing force, when the balance of power was
in their favor. God was inexorable, punishing
2

14 AN A PRIOKI

every violation of his will ; for every transgres-
sion brought its exact recompense of punishment.
Throughout the universe, all was stern, inexora-
ble, merciless*

I asked, what is the true course for me to fol-
low, placed as I am, a god among gods ? I an-
swered thus : I am a substance that may be view-
ed under two aspects ; for I am (1) a substance
exerting power over other substances, and capa-
ble of inflicting suffering on them ; I am also (2)
a substance upon which other substances exert
power — upon which other substances inflict pain.
I must train myself, consequently, (1) To the
habit of prompt, inevitable, inexorable execution,
and (2) To the habit of patient, unmurmuring
endurance.

In execution, therefore, I will be prompt. I
will have no misgivings ; and my authority over
another shall be measured by my power of inflict-
ing sufl^ering upon him. I will study how I can
make men suffer. I will be merciless, and will
pursue my enemy as far as comports with my
safety. If it is dangerous to kill him — if I am in
a country where laws prevail — I will shed no
blood ; but if no danger to myself intervene, then
will I kill him as I would kill a dog. My eye

AUTOBIOGRAPHY. 15

shall know no pity. I will have no rule of con-
duct other than a cold and deliberate calculation
of the chances of ultimate success. I will no
longer investigate the fantastical principles of what
are called wrong and right, but will study how far
rapid execution, under the circumstances of the
present age, and state of the world, will enable
me to inflict suffering upon men.

But, I asked, how will I be able to sustain the
harrassing war which I shall be obliged to carry
on, if my hand is thus openly lifted against every
man, and every man's hand against mine ? I an-
swered in this way : — My demands shall be mod-
erate ; I will be willing to be poor, to live unob-
served by men, and to be satisfied with what is
necessary for the wants of my body. I will en-
deavor to avoid envy, and will wound no man's
feelings ; I w^ill be kind and courteous to all, the
friend of the poor, and the enemy of none but
the rich and the insolent ; and I will always
maintain the cause of the weak against the op-
pressor. If I act thus, who will desire to injure
me ? Who, except the tyrants and oppressors,
will ever oppose me ?

And thus will I cause the opposition of tyrants
and oppressors to cease, so far as I am concern-

16 AN A PRIORI.

ed : — I will imitate the inexorable powers of na-
ture : if a man act against those powers, he will
suffer the consequence ; he that treads upon fire
will be burned, he that falls in the sea will be
drowned. It is of no avail to humble one's self
before fire or water ; for the natural powers are
inexorable. I also will be a fire to my enemies ;
I will be inexorable, cruel, merciless, without hu-
man feeling — nay, on the contrary, I will exult in
the suffering I inflict. To my enemies, suprema-
cy and revenge shall be the law and aim of my
life. If expediency keep me' quiet for a while,
the will for swift retribution shall never slumber :
by day and by night, will I repeat to myself that
I have not yet obtained full vengeance. As the
stars move regularly and inevitably in their courses,
so will I move regularly and inevitably to my
revenge. Human feeling shall have no place in
me, but give way to the calculus, when I think of
my enemies. My resolution, making allowance for
the difference in the state of civilization, may be
well expressed in the words of Lamech :

Adah and Zillah, hear my voice !

Ye wives of Lamech, hearken unto my speech !

For the least wrong done unto me, I will kill ;

For a wound I will kill a man.

For a deadly wound I will kill a child even ;

For if Cain avengeth himself sevenfold,

AUTOBIOGRAPHY. 17

Surely Lamech shall avenge himself seventy and sev-
enfold.

I was now in the nioveraent of private experi-
ence which corresponds to the great movement of
the Chaldean civilization. The Chaldeans, ac-
cording to the prophet Habakkuk, were '^ a bitter
and hasty nation, a people imperious and self-
willed, whose judgments and decrees proceeded
from themselves."

The prophet says of them :

He is a proud man, neither keepeth at home,

He enlargeth his desire as hell,

And is as death — and cannot be satisfied.

And again :

They shall come up, all of them, in troops, for vio-?

lence :
Their glance is ever forward !
They gather captives like the sand !
They scoflfat kings,
And princes are a scorn unto them.
They deride every strong hold :
They cast up mounds of earth and take it. —
Then his spirit renews itself,
He transgresses and is guilty ;
For this his Power is his God.

Indeed, according to Buchez, this Chaldean>
civilization preceded that of India and Egypt-

2*

18 AN A PRIORI

Buchez has a convenient method of discovering
the civilization of the nations whose history has
been forgotten, a method consisting in a simple
application of the rule of three. All progressions
may be counted either forward or backward ; if
they increase in one direction, they must, of ne-
cessity, decrease in the other. The civilization
of India and Egypt, was one of relative inequality ^
being founded on the dogma of a fall ; the civili-
zation of Christianity is one of equality^ for it is
founded on the dogma of a redemption. From
the Christian point of view, no man can be regard-
ed as having fallen below the level of humanity,
for Christ died for the sinner more especially :
neither can any man be regarded as having raised
himself altogether above the level — for it was ne-
cessary that Christ should die for this man also.

Now — to apply the series— as the Indian and
Egyptian dispensation is to the Christian, so is
the Christian dispensation to — what ? Verily we
are not prepared to say.

But this is taking the series in its increasing di-
rection ; let us reverse it, and endeavor to find
the character of the dispensation which preceded
that of India and Egypt. — As the Christian civi-
lization is to that of India and Egypt, that is, as

AUTOBIOGRAPHY. 19

equality is to relative inequality^ so is the civili-
zation of India and Egypt to the truly primitive
civilization, that is, so is relative inequality to —
what ? Buchez answers, to absolute inequality^
to the state in which the human race was divided
into two classes, mortal men, and mortal gods.

The Goths considered themselves to be a na-
tion of gods, and their national name indicates as
much, since (as Fabre d' Olivet shows in his phi-
losophical history) the words god and goth come
from the same root. The higher classes in
Greece, Rome, and, indeed, almost every coun-
try, claimed to be descended from the gods.
The Roman Senate claimed to be a body of di-
vine men. This civilization, which has left its
traces, not only in Greece and Rome, but also in
the movement of our present epoch, was in its
highest splendor in the most ancient times — times
now almost forgotten by the historian. In those
days, men lived, to a certain extent, in community^
not in that association in the harmony of christian
love, to which we look forward now, knowing that
paradise, and the garden of Eden,* are before us,

*He that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spirit saith
unto the churches ! To him that overcometh, will I give
to eat of the Tree of Life, which is in the midst of the
Paradise of God. Rev, 2 : 7.

20 AN A PRIORI

and not behind us in the past, but in a communism
based on the mere knowledge of material inter-
ests— for the philosophy of this epoch was mate-
rialism, Sabianism. The Peruvians, who were
governed by a dynasty of mortal gods, and who
were in this form of civilization when their empire
was destroyed, held all their lands from the crown.
The manufactories of Babylon were carried on,
in a certain manner, in community. In those
days were built the great pyramidal towers, and
the Cyclopean works which astonish the traveler in
Europe and Asia. In those days, a species of
slavery prevailed, infinitely more atrocious than
anything that has since existed on the face of the
earth : for then gigantic labors were accomplish-
ed under the eye of a stern despotism, which
would have been impossible in any other state of
society. At that time were built the tower of
Babel, and those eternal vestiges of tyranny, the
pyramids of Egypt. The worship of this epoch
was conducted on towers and pyramids, with hu-
man sacrifices. This worship, carried every-
where in the old world by the Phoenicians and
Carthagenians, was reproduced in Mexico, under
the Aztecs, where human sacrifices were offered
on the platforms at the top of the pyramidal tow-
ers— the victims being first slain, and then rolled
down the great flights of steps.

AUTOBIOGRAPHY. 21

The Chaldean worship was that of the inexora-
ble powers of Nature — if worship it could be
called : and their religion consisted, not in the
service of the Living God, but in an endeavor to
bring the occult powers of nature under the con-
trol of the human will. Their priests were wiz-
ards, and their ceremonies were the ceremonies
of magic, a term derived from the word Magian^
the title attributed to the priestly caste. This
age was fruitful in heroes and tyrants of the
stamp of Nimrod, the hunter of men ; but it pro-
duced no inspired prophets ; for there is no inspi-
ration where men recognize no living and self-
conscious God, superior to themselves. The
Chaldeans had an abundance of magicians, wiz-
ards, soothsayers, and witches, in whom the
blind impulse of nature originated oracular speech-
es, but no prophet.

I had become — in this second sub-epoch of de-
sire— a perfect Chaldean ; for I worshiped, with
blind devotion, the dead god of the Babylonians,
viz : the active powers of nature operating ac-
cording to the laws of necessity. I looked upon
myself as a mortal god, and upon the frequenters
of the churches as men. I had no hesitation in
affirming within myself that there was an infinite
gulf between men, and a mortal god like myself.

22

AN A PRIORI

Indeed, if I had received power at this lime, I
should have made a tyrant after the order of Nim-
rod. I cannot express the contempt I felt for
those whose mean, ungenerous spirit, led them to
acquiesce in the popular worship, through fear of
hell. If I had held them in my hands, I would
have crushed them without mercy, for I should
have considered the greatest degradation as the
condition most appropriate to them : yea, an
oppression that would have destroyed them, would
have found favor in my eyes. The world, by
their destruction, might become a fit abode for
the mortal gods, and a fit sphere for the display
of generosity and god-like sentiment. In a world
thus purified, exaltation of character might be-
come the standard and measure of human dignity.
And what generous, high-minded man, who held
a mean-spiriled, fawning, servile wretch in his
power, a wretch always accessible to the motive
of fear, and never accessible to any higher mo-
tive, would consider him fit for any position, save
that of the vilest slave. Is there any communion
possible between a worm, and a mortal god ?

But I always retained some lingering doubt of
the truth of this system : I always feared that
there might indeed exist a Divine Tyrant who
had power to damn in hell. If my Chaldean doc-

AUTOBIOGRAPHY. 23

trine were true, then probably I should not exist
at all after death. Perhaps I should join the uni-
versal force that moves the worlds, and become
lost in the general flood of electricity, or gravita-
tion. Like would go to like. Every particle
in my physical frame would go into new combina-
tions with other matter, and the soul would return
to the original force from which it emanated.
Perhaps 1 might, in my future state, assist uncon-
sciously in keeping the moon in her orbit. But
if this doctrine were not true, if there were indeed
a Living God in heaven, then hell was my portion.
In that case, I saw hell at the end of my course,
and I welcomed it. I frequently imagined myself
in hell, a serene god, notwithstanding the burning
brimstone ; and I gloried in the force of my will.

The culture that resulted from all these reflec-
tions, may be summed up in two points. (1) I
trained myself to acruel, inexorable mercilessness,
a suppression of all human feeling toward those
whom I held to be my enemies. (2) I trained
myself to spiritual strength and power of endur-
ance, to contempt for the sufferings of the body,
that I might, hereafter, when in hell, be able to
rise serenely above the torments to which my
earthly frame would be subjected, and calmly as-
sert my essential divinity.

24 AN A PRIORI

I succeeded very well in this course of educa-
tion of the will, for I acted on the true maxim : —
'^ If a man wishes to possess a certain character,
let him act as though he were already possessed
of it, and he will possess it.'' I acted as though
1 were merciless, and I became merciless : I
acted as though I were able, with serenity of soul,
to endure all physical pain, and, at last, I came to
believe that no suffering could conquer me. This
capacity of enduring pain was the main point ; for
when I came to feel that I could be damned with-
out flinching, I was at peace. What cared I for
the future ? — I felt that I commanded my own
soul, and enjoyed happiness that nothing could
take from me. All the misery of the body, be-
cause it was of an inferior order, could never
equal the joy of my soul. Let misery be piled
mountain high upon the outer man, the difference
would be in favor of the soul, and would be clear

Mh(Biro
Third sub epoch : — that of execution in desire.

This is the sub-epoch in which a clear and dis-
tinct notion of the object desired, is actually ob-
tained : this sub-epoch closes, therefore, the great
movement of desire.

AUTOBIOGRAPHY. 25

One evening, in the spring of 1839, 1 was
walking, about a hundred yards in front of the
house in which I lived, when suddenly, upon
turning to go back, I fell — I felt no pain, no sick-
ness of any kind, and immediately rose again to
my feet. I fell again, though still without pain or
sickness, and this time I found it difficult to rise.
I then crept, as well as I could, on my hands and
feet, into the house, got into bed, and went to
sleep. In the morning I began to feel very ill,
and sent my servant for assistance. The doctor
came soon, and bled me in the arm, informing me
that I had a remittant fever. I grew quite ill
afterward, and remained several days confined to
my bed, with my energies, both mental and phys-
ical, completely prostrated. During this time, I
was too unwell to think at all, and almost too un-
well to remember anything.

After a while, I recovered, and walked about

a little in the fresh air. This motion enlivened

me, and I began to feel the operation of the vital

forces, so that I felt almost well. I immediately

began, with my renovated strength, to carry on

that education of the will which was now the main

occupation of my life. I endeavored to imagine

myself suffering the torments of hell, and rising

superior to them through the force of spiritual
3

26 AN A PRIORI

energy : I endeavored to put myself into the posi-
tion of unflinching defiance. But it was all in
vain, my mental energies were still prostrated by
the remains of my fever. I felt no elasticity of
will, I had no energy wherewith to hate, I could
not raise a feeling of defiance. I still thought
God to be a tyrant, but all my opposition to him
was prostrated. I could no longer carry on the
war. These reflections then passed through my
mind : — Fever depends on the state of the body,
no effort of will can save any man from it : what
if God should first give me a remitting fever^

AND THEN DAMN ME IN MY STATE OE CONSEQUENT

PROSTRATION, would he not then conquer both
body and soul ? The empire of my soul is then
not mine ; — God rules there as well as in the
body. I, who acknowledge no right but prevail-
ing might, am then conquered by might — I am
driven from my last strong hold. I can defy
even, only by permission, and only by strength
given me by the superior power whom I defy.
What a mockery of my Supreme Sovereignly in
my own self-subsisting essence is this. If I submit,
I am a slave ; if I defy, I am still a slave* I
have no independant action ; I am a victim, not
only according to the outer, but also according to
the inner man.

AUTOBlOaHAPHY. 27

Biit God (and this reflection innpressed me pro-
foundly) is evidently not then a power of the or-
der I supposed. The Devil is a pouter of that
order, and, if I rebel against God, he will bring
me under the tyranny of the devil. If the devil
and I are gods, then God is more than god ; for
he is independant of us, while we are victims in
his hands, dependant for all things upon him.
Necessity reigns then within as well as without.

Three things I had supposed to be distinct, (1)
God, (2) Myself, an individual substance like
God, though less powerful, and (3) The Rule
of Right, established by the prevalence of the
stronger powers of the universe. I had endeav-
ored to establish the rule of right in opposition to
God, by conquering him in the sphere of my own
soul. But how w^ere all these high thoughts
abased ! God was superior to all substances, for
they vanished at his presence. There was no
liberty where he came, for he was all and in all.
He gave powers according to his pleasure, and
powers prevailed according to his pleasure, and
thus he created the rule of right according to his
pleasure. How could I pretend to put him on
trial — how could I pretend to judge him accord-
ing to an immutable rule of right, when he him-
self created that very rule of right (and, conse-

28 AN A PRIORI

quently was able to change it) according to his
good pleasure ? I was indeed conquered — anni-
hilated. I felt as though I were at the entrance
of some dark and mysterious cave, where the es-
sential being of my soul was momentarily created
by the dim vapors that exhaled from the mouth of
the abyss. I seemed to have no real and substan-
tial existence, and, from this moment, I lost faith
in myself. I seemed no longer to be a free agent
in any sense. Outwardly, I was acted upon by
external circumstances, and inwardly, it was not I
that willed, but God who formed my feelings,
thoughts, passions, state of mind, in such a way
that I merely appeared to will. I had exaUed
myself in my pride, but now there was no / to be
proud — /was annihilated. I, as a separate sub-
stance, a person, vanished at once ; and all sep-
rate substances, all persons, vanished with me,
leaving God alone as the sole foundation of the
universe, with all visible things as the mere phe-
nomena of his sole and sovereign activity.

In fact, if God be ABSOLUTE, and the sole self-
existing Power, he does all that is done in the
world. For if anything be done by the creature,
it is done, either (1) by God himself, who uses
the creature as a mere instrument, or (2) by the
creature, through virtue of some power he possess-

AUTOBIOGRAPHY. 29

es independent of God. But, if the creature pos-
sess any power independent of God, he is so
far self-existing — a conclusion which is absurd by
the hypothesis. God created the creature, and,
if the creature do anything by means of energy
imparted in the act of creation, it is God that does
it, for the power comes from God : and, if the
creature afterward perform any act, it is God who
performs this also, for, if God did not continue to
impart strength by his preserving energy, the crea-
ture would return to its original state of non-exis-
tence. If God create, and the creature continue
in existence after the creation ; it is through the
power of God sustaining it : if it can continue
without the sustaining power of God, then there
is some independant force in the creature itself,
or in nature — which is contrary to the hypothesis
that God is the only self-existing being. If the
creature perform any act which is not a direct or
indirect act of God himself, then there is some
force in existence independent of God, for if God
did not do it, some other force did — but the hy-
pothesis leaves no room for any force independant
of God. The hypothesis that God is absolute,
leads necessarily to Pantheism : there is no way
of avoiding this conclusion. God could not have
created man an independent being ; for the facts

of creation and independence, exclude each other..
3^

30 AN A PRIORI

The theory of evil being merely permitted by
God, is unspeakably absurd ; for, if he permits
any act, he either does the act himself, or some
other power, who is not God, does it ; but no
other power, which is not God, can possibly do
any thing whatever ; for then there would exist
an operative power, acting from itself, independ-
ently of God, a power of the Divine Order, only
weaker — which is absurd by the hypothesis that
God is absolute. The doctrine, therefore, of the
Divine Absolute Sovereignty — which is identical
with that of an Absolute Creation of all things out
of nothing — originates a system of Pantheism.

The same method of reasoning annihilates
every rule of right supposed to be independent
of God. For the rule of right is nothing more
than the way in which God manifests his will —
for, if there be any other rule of right, it is the
manifestation of some still superior will, or else it
is an existence independent of God, which inde-
pendent existence would be another God, which
is absurd. The rule of right is the sum of the
unvarying laws of nature : who ever thought of
questioning the justice of nature ? Now God
created nature, and thus created its laws and re-
lations : and he might have made it altogether
different if he had pleased. He might have given

I

AUTOBIOGRAPHY. 31

man another nature, and then another thing would
have been right for man from what is right now.
When God created individual things, he created
their natures, and thus he created right and
wrong ; for right for any individual being is what
is according to the nature of that individual being,
and wrong is what is contrary to that nature.
Again, that may be stated to be right, or wrong,
universally, which is in accordance with, or con-
trary to, the universal order of nature. But God,
since he created nature, is anterior to, and above,
all nature ; for if we say he has a nature, we say
there is a God superior to God — for there must
have been a God to originate this higher nature,
all of which is absurd. God has no nature, and,
for that reason, we say he is neither good nor
bad, moral nor immoral ; for he transcends all
distinctions of right and wrong, seeing he is ante-
rior to, and above, all right and wrong, he having
created all right and w^rong according to his good
pleasure.

We acknowledge all this when we deny the
justice of God, for we deny that justice in this
way : we examine the determinative will of God
as manifested in nature, and call that right — why
right ? because it is in accordance with the na-
ture which the creator has been pleased to give

32 AN A PRIORI

to created things. We then exaniine the precep-
tive will of God^ and, if we find a discrepancy
between this and the determinative will, we say
God is unjust. But which God is it that we af-
firm to be unjust ? Evidently the author of the
preceptive will : for no living man ever dreamed
of attributing injustice to the author of the deter-
minative will — that is, to the God who manifests
himself in nature. But what does all this mean ?
It means that we look upon any system of relig-
ion which stands in conflict w^ith the evident rev-
elations in nature, as an imposition : it means that
we deny the existence of this new God, who is
set forth as the author of a preceptive will oppos-
ing the determinative will of the true God (for an
unjust God is no God at all) and that we charac-
terise the preachers of the religion of this imag-
inary God, as fanatics or impostors.

I tried to oppose these conclusions, by saying
it was disgraceful in me to submit to mere force :
but what could I do about it ? I had fought my
ground inch by inch like a man, and when 1 made
my last stand, I was instantly defeated. There
was no use in disguising the matter, I was con-
quered. Look where I w^ould, there was no point
of shelter. I was indeed willing to carry on the
war, but where could I find a field for contest ^

AUTOBIOGRAPHY. 33

I could not fight for the sovereignty of the out-
ward man, for how could I insure myself against
disease, poverty, oppression, injustice, or even
justice, when it was administered by a higher pow-
er. And how should I endeavor to assert sove-
reignty in the sphere of truth ? I could no lon-
ger disguise from myself the plain fact that truth
was truth, whether I darkened my eyes to it or
not — whether I withheld my assent or not. Ought
I to endeavor to assert sovereignty over ray own
will ? I had tried that ! God held me in his
hand, and all my feelings, passions, determina-
tions, were exactly as he willed they should be —
even my feelings of fiercest defiance. I would
have fought longer, but saw it was of no avail, for
evidently my course was irretrievably ruined. —
Suppose it be disgraceful for me to submit —
is there any other course open for me ? How
shall I hold out longer ? What can 1 do ? — So I
submitted at once, as to a superior force.

Then I said, why not submit with a good
grace ? Suppose a great conqueror, Napoleon
for example, should invade a country and con-
quer it, and should make a proclamation, while the
conquered people were in despair of ever retriev-
ing their condition, and thought of emigrating,
showing that although he intended to rule arbitra-

34 AN A PRIORI

rily, and to deprive them of their political rights,
he would yet so arrange matters in other respects,
that they would be better off, and happier, than
they were before — would it not be wiser for this
people to submit and make the best of their cir-
cumstances ? But suppose they continue to fight ?
But they cannot continue to fight, for the invad-
ing army is overwhelming by the hypothesis.
But if, at some future time, they should become
strong enough to begin the fight again ? Very
well : let them fight when they gather more
strength, for then the conditions of the question
will be altogether changed, but let no man contend
against evident necessity. I cannot contend
against God, and it is for my advantage to sub-
mit : 1 will submit therefore, like a conquered
province, to hard necessity.

Again, I asked, is even this wise. If a man
be a slave, without hope of freedom, he ought to
submit, to adapt himself to his condition without
murmuring at his lot ; but if, by killing his mas-
ter, he may obtain freedom — by all means let him
kill his master. We may reason as we please
about the inalienable right of all men to freedom ;
but, if any one be deprived of it by superior pow-
er, let him not feed himself on abstractions, but

AUTOBIOGRAPHY. 35

wait patiently until he sees opportunity of doing
something with prospect of success. It is of no
use to contend against overwhelming force.
Now — when I have been overcome by Supreme
Might, and see no chance for escape, but am
made a servant, an instrument in the hands of
Supreme Power — why not resign myself to my
fate, and adapt myself to my condition as ser-
vant and instrument ? So I gave in my final, but
still reluctant submission : then I said, — I am a
fool, and have been a fool all along ! God is not
of my nature, and, by submitting to God, I come
under no tyranny ; for tyranny is an authority,
depending on mere force, that is exercised by a
being upon his equals^ upon those of a like na-
ture with himself. The rule of monarchs, the
rule of the devil over the damned, is tyranny :
but the rule of God is not tyranny, for it does not
partake of a political or governmental character —
it is not a rule of authority. God is not a gov-
ernor of the universe, for a governor rules over
those of a like nature with himself, and exercises
a political and judicial power, while God exer-
cises a creative, a preserving, and a determina-
tive power of an altogether different kind. If I
am a servant of God, I am under no tyranny ; for
God does not govern, but supports, sustains, and
directs, me. It is the rule of the devil that is

36 AN A PRIORI

tyranny ; and I naust submit to God, or come
under the tyranny of the devil. I must be, either
the servant of God, or the bond slave of the
devil : and even as the slave of the devil, I can"
not escape God, for he created, sustains, and
preserves all, and therefore rules all and in all.
Thus I was enabled to submit with more satisfac-
tion to myself, but it came hard after all ; for I
had supposed myself to be a free citizen of the
universe, a peer of God, and was loth to lay down
my divinity.

Thus the great epoch of desire was consum-
mated in the discovery of the object that was de-
sired, viz : the Absolute God, the Author of all
Existence, the Eternal Father."^ Henceforth,
I had only to follow down the great religious dis-
pensations which had been given from time to
time to men : for my problem, henceforth, was
the discovery of the means whereby I might ob-
tain communion and fellowship with the Father.
The great object of desire, in the whole series,
was communion with God, and the great epoch
of reasoning, was, therefore, to be taken up with
investigations relating to that communion : but
the object of desire in the isolated grand epoch of

*See Note C.

AUTOBIOGRAPHY. 37

desire, was, to clear up the blindness which at-
tached to the movenaent of the instinctive tenden-
cies, so that the desire might be no longer blind,
but open and full by reason of a clear knowledge
of the object desired. I now knew, by reason
of this experience in the first grand epoch, what
it was that I really desired, viz : communion w^ith
God — but 1 had no knowledge whatever of any
means by which such communion might be effect-
ed. The next grand epoch subdivides itself,
therefore, as follows : (1) Full and open desire
for communion and fellowship with God, (2)
Reasoning upon the means whereby such fellow-
ship might be effected, (3) Discovery of these
means.

Secojs^d Grand Epoch. [Reasoning.]
First sub epoch : — that of desire in reasoning.

I had submitted reluctantly, but soon became
satisfied with my new position, and desired hon-
estly, heartily, earnestly and truly, to find the way
in which I could serve God acceptably. I knew
that the one absolute God, the Eternal Father,
existed ; and I desired to have fellowship with
him. But how should I, the finite, come into
relations with him, the infinite ? How could any
communion be rendered possible between me and
the absolute God ? I felt myself lo be indeed
nothing. There was no communion between God
and me ; for there was no kindred, no likeness of
nature, between us. What communion could I

* That is, Division : — ** the name of one was Peleg, for
in his days was the earth divided, ^^ Genesis, 10—25.

40 AN A PRIORI

have with him while I was a mere instrument in
his hands ? I was less than a slave, how then could
I have fellowship with him ? — for a certain equal-
ity is a prior requisite for all fellowship : and an
instrument in the hands of another, can evidently
never have fellowship with that other. I felt my-
self to be a puppet in the hands of God, with
God behind me, I not seeing him, while he pulled,
as it were, the wires by which I was made to act.
Outward circumstances operated upon me accord-
ing to his will, and not according to mine ; and
within, God created momentarily my appetencies,
tendencies, passions, according to his own will.
He could alter the outward circumstances, leaving
the inward tendencies and passions as they were,
and my conduct would be changed as he willed :
on the other hand, he could alter the inward ten-
dencies, leaving outward circumstances as they
were, and my conduct would be changed in like
manner : again, he could alter both the inward
and the outward, the subjective and the objec-
tive, always performing his irresistable will. He
created me with a certain character known to
himself, and placed me in the world at a certain
epoch of history, under a certain order of society,
in certain circumstances ; and these arrangements
of his Providence operated upon me, according
to my original character, producing a course of

AUTOBIOGRAPHY. 41

life which was necessary — which might have been
computed beforehand by one who had the condi-
tions of the problem given. What was I then ?
A mere victim in the hands of God.

-Still I desired to have fellowship with God> if
such fellowship were indeed possible. I resolved
solemnly that I would endeavor to find out which
religion, among the innumerable systems which
divided his worshippers, was the religion of God ;
and, in case I succeeded in finding it, I determin-
ed to live according to it. I would make this
my chief work. If I found Christianity to be
true, I would live according to the precepts of the
gospel ; if Mahometanism, I was perfectly ready
to turn Turk ; if Judaism, I would conform to
the religion of Moses — whatever religion I found
to be the religion of the Absolute God, that re^
ligion I would embrace.

About this time, I was very much interested
in Shakespeare, and once, after reading all the
morning, when I closed the book, I found my-
self sympathising with, and pitying, the villain of
the play. This opened my eyes to the deprava-
tion of character I had undergone by reason of
my speculations. I saw at once, that all this*

must be cured, that I ought to cultivate better

4*

42 AN A PRIORI.

feelings. So I shut up every book that gave
food to perverse passion, or that could be made
(as Shakspeare, for example) to furnish such
food, and opened the Bible, and began to study
the New Testament and the Prophets. — Not that
I believed the Scriptures, but that 1 knew I should
find in them the proper food for my moral nature.
I disbelieved the doctrines of the Bible, but
reverenced its ethics : So I set myself earnestly
to the task of encouraging better, and less mur-
derous feelings — not forgetting to strive night and
day to discover the reh'gion of God.

Formerly, I had refused to look for the truth,
supposing I myself, as a god, could create all the
truth that was requisite for my own purposes. I
bad supposed that what I willed was truth, so far
as I had power to make it so. When, therefore,
I had investigated any subject, I had done it
not to discover what was true, but to measure
power, and to see how far I could oppose that
which was displeasing to me. But now all this
was changed. I saw now that truth was what was
in accordance with Divine Order. I saw that if
I would find what really existed, I must examine
dispassionately. I must not allow myself to be
swayed to one side or the other by my desires.
I must not look into myself to see what accords

AUTOBIOGRAPHY. 43

with my wishes, but must go far away from my-
self, and examine the facts of the case calmly,
whether they are pleasant to me or the contrary.
Formerly, I had tried to see how much I could
help believing, but now I tried to see how much
I could find a rational ground to believe. I w^as
seeking for truth, and desired to learn and believe
as much of it as possible. I had rather believe
too much (but there was little danger of that,)
and be mistaken in some things, than not to be-
lieve enough. In fact (I said) if I try not to be-
lieve, I shall never know the truth at all ; while,
if I try to believe, I shall probably learn some
truth, even though I run a risk of being sometimes
deceived.

I reasoned with myself as follows : If a man
do not exert himself in an enterprise, he will fail,
but, if he exert himself, he has a chance for suc-
cess.— But why should I work when there is al-
ways a strong chance for failure ? If you do not
exert yourself, there is a ce7Hainty of failure, but
if you go earnestly to work, there is a chance for
success. If you are determined never to believe
anything, you will certainly never know the truth,
and none but fools will say they will not believe
anything whatever for fear of being deceived some-
times.

44 AN A PRIORI

So I determined to weigh everything dispas-
sionately in the scales of deliberate judgment, and
to accept the conclusion, whatever it might be.

But often finding it difficult to obtain firm faith
in my conclusions, I determined to act on such
conclusions as 1 had verified, as though I did be-
lieve them, whether I really believed them or not.
And by thus acting on them for a short time, I
came to have full confidence in them. I had dis-
believed the Christian miracles on the strength of
the maxim, that it is always more probable that a
human witness should be deceived, or even lie,
than that the order of the universe should be
changed. For we often see men deceived, and
have often known them to lie, but have never
known the order of nature to be violated. I said,
however, God created the order of nature, and
therefore may have violated it at some time, for
he that made, can unmake, or alter — who knows ?
If, therefore, good and sufficient testimony to any
miracle can be adduced, we must believe in the
miracle. For, evidently, God may have done
such a thing, and, if he has done it in past times,
we could know of it only through the testimony of
witnesses : if we say, therefore, we will not be-
lieve such testimony, we do it under pain of a
heavy penalty ; for we foreclose ourselves from

AUTOBIOGRAPHY. 45

the knowledge of truth in that case — as, evident-
ly, such truth can be learned only through testi-
mony. Still I did uot believe in the Christian
miracles, for the testimony was altogether unsat-
isfactory.

Looking over my papers, I find, on the back
of an old money account, a sort of journal re-
ferring to the events of this sub-epoch ; and I
subjoin such passages from it as promise to prove
interesting in the connection. The extracts, poor
as they are, are worth more than the money ac-
counted for on the other side of the sheet.

March 1839. I see that by physical indispo-
sition, the mind may be stricken, the most intense
intellectual energy prostrated, the strongest moral
courage undermined and reduced, and all the phi-
losophy of the Stoics rendered of no effect. To
what purpose do we train ourselves to endure with
patience every privation, to suffer in silence every
species of injustice, and to bear up against adver-
sity with resignation ? How long will we flatter
ourselves that — though the body may be sub-
dued— the mind is unconquerable ?

April 1839. There are, it may be, a million
of different religions, and sects of religions in the

46 AN 4 PRIORI

world. Most of them have their priests appoint-
ed lo sacred offices : many of them have their
sacred books, treating of diverse points of faith.
These sects maintain a reciprocal persecution,
and the world is one vast stage, on which the
tragedies of imprisonment, torture, and judicial
murder for the sake of religion, are continually
enacted. If the suffering of martyrdom, and every
species of persecution, with resignation and pa-
tience, be any proof of the Divine Authority of
any particular belief, then the truth of the dogmas
held by each and every one of these sects, is
abundantly demonstrated.

*3pril 1839. But how do I know that the
Christian preachers actually believe the doctrines
they teach ? I have no doubt they really suppose
the preaching of their doctrine to be conducive to
ihe welfare of the world : but, if I ask them con-
cerning their doctrine, it will be impossible for
them to give me a satisfactory answer ; for, if
they believe in Christianity, they will tell me they
do, and tell the truth ; but if they do not believe,
they will still tell me they do, because they think
the upholding of the doctrine to be necessary in
the present condition of society. How shall I
find out whether the christian preachers are hon-
est men or the contrary ? Verily I cannot say.

AUTOBIOGRAPHY. it

J\lay 1839. As no two men ever agree on
the subject of religion, and I ana at this time in
great doubt on that matter, I have determined
never to mention the subject again. I have never
seen any good derived from such discussions, but,
on the contrary, have often seen them attended
with much evil.

May \8S9. ''One fact is worth a host of
speculations."

" We are to seek for truth in nature, and not
in the operation of our own minds."

JUay 1839. I have until now been anxious
for the good word of the world. To-day this is
to be changed, and henceforth I shall be satisfied
with my own approbation.

June 1839. Many men have I seen injured
by too much talking. I have heard of men injur-
ing themselves by too much silence : such a thing
may very possibly have occurred, but no case of
that nature ever came under my particular obser-
vation.

June 1839. I denied all belief in the Chris-
tian Revelation, but, finding myself tending to-
ward a state of immorality and utter heartless-

48 AIT A PRIORI

ness, I was forced to take to the New Testament
in self-defence.

June 1839. I think the doctrine that Logic is
an invention of the devil, has more truth in it than
is generally supposed.

The rest of the Journal consists of verses.

It appears to me that 1 had reproduced, in
this first sub-epoch of the grand epoch of reason-
ing, the doctrine indicated in the book of Job, a
doctrine which formed the foundation of the early
Patriarchal civilization.

In the book of Job, the three comforters —
and at last Job himself — endeavored to justify
God, by showing that the wicked, though they
triumph for a while, yet meet in the end with
just retribution. But the tenor of the baok shows
the absurdity of all such reasoning ; for Job, a
just man, is represented as being persecuted mere-
ly for the purpose of enabling an angelic person-
age to gratify his private curiosity. '^ And Satan
(not the Devil, but an official adversary,) answer-
ed the Lord, and said, Skin for skin, yea, all that
a man hath, he will give for his life. But put
forth thy hand now, and touch his bone and his
flesh, and he will curse thee to thy face."

AUTOBIOGRAPHY. 49

Iti the beginning of the poetical discussion,
Job's friends put God on trial, and deliberately
pronounce that he is justified in his ways, that
Job deserves the punishment inflicted upon him,
and that, therefore, the Divine Conduct is strictly
conformed to the immutable rule of righteousness.
But Job answers very sensibly : —

'^ Will ye speak wickedly for God ?

And talk deceitfully for him?

Will ye accept his person?

Will ye contend for God ?

Is it good that he should search you out 1

Or as one man mocketh another, do ye so mock him ?

He will surely reprove you,

If ye do secretly accept persons.

Shall not his excellency make you afraid ?

And his dread fall upon you ? ' '

This is perhaps the most perfect rebuke that
was ever directed against those incompetent and
stupid persons, who presume, because of the sup-
posed excellency of their own hearts, to come
forth and justify on all occasions, the divine con-
duct, as they understand it. It is as mean and
despicable to accept God's person, when the
course of his Providence appears evidently to run
counter to justice, as it is to accept the person of
any very respectable neighbor. '' His excellency
would make us afraid, and his dread would fall
upon us," forcing us to judge justly, even if the
5

50 AN A PRIORI

Almighty himself were on trial, and we were to
be damned for giving a just verdict against him,
if it were not for our being secretly moved by an
abject fear of his person.

What did Job's friends, or even Job himself,
know of the real cause of his sufferings ? The
preface to the poem tells us there was a dispute
in heaven as to whether Job would continue to
maintain his integrity if God should take from
him all outward prosperity, and bring him, through
distressing disease, to the brink of the grave.
The difficulty was to be settled by way of exper-
iment ; not that the Lard was ignorant of what
the result would be, but that the Adversary re-
quired ocular demonstration. When the suffer-
ing came upon Job, how far from the purpose
were the speeches of all his friends !

The justification of the present order of things,
by saying that the suffering we undergo is ordain-
ed by Providence, is not only stupid, but wicked.
God never willed that the world should be the
den of misery it is ; and most of the suffering in it
comes from the perversity of the very class of
persons who justify evident immorality, because
in their stupidity they suppose it to have been
committed by God. These Job's comforters,

AUTOBIOORAPHY. 51

who, with elongated faces, and nasal and righteous
accent, justify all evil by attributing it to the Al-
mighty, are the true curse of the world. They
not only degrade human nature in their own per-
sons, but also misrepresent the Divine Justice in
such a way as to drive every honest man who
believes their statements, into direct opposition
and open war with the absolute Author of the
Universe.

But if it be wicked to justify the order of Prov-
idence, when it appears in our eyes to be totally
opposed to the principles of rectitude, it is un-
speakably absurd for us to attempt to condemn it
t/ derany circumstances whatever. And the main
moral of the book of Job appears to be even
this, viz : That men are by no means called upon
either to justify or condemn the ways of Provi-
dence, and that the Absolute is abundantly com-
petent to conduct his own affairs, without render-
ing any account of them to men.

How can we justify or condemn God's ways
except by putting him on trial, and comparing his
actions with the moral Law ? And how can we
try God by the moral law without implying that
he owes fealty to that law, thus subordinating the
Creator to the creature — for God, by creating
nature, including the nature of man who is a mor-

52 AN" A PRIORI

al agent, created the moral law, and therefore has
power to change it according to his good pleasure.
It is well for us to be cautious when we atte«ipt
to justify Providence —

** Remembering that God is in heaven^

And we upon earth,

That our words may be few."

It is our business, not to justify Providence or
to condemn it, but simply to let it alone ; for we
can make no affirmation concerning the Absolute,
which is not absurd ; for, by our nature, we are
incapable of any knowledge beyond that of rela-
tive existences. We know concerning the Ab-
solute, precisely nothing at all, save the bare fact
of his powerful existence ; and when we affirm
anything concerning the law of his action, we
speak relatively, and, consequently, affirm that
which must of necessity be false. If the Chaldean
be wrong in contending against an imaginary rela-
tive God, who does not exist, the Pietists, and
Job's comforters, are equally wrong in handing
in their adhesion to the same non-existing God :
and the Chaldean has, indeed, an immeasurable
advantage over the Pietist ; for the Chaldean pre-
serves the dignity of man, and the purity of the
moral law, while the Pietist sacrifices the moral
law at the shrine of an imaginary relative governor

AUTOBIOGRAPHY. 63

of the univ^erse, whose actions, because he at-
tempts to exercise also the functions of an Abso-
lute God, are of necessity unjust*

'' As the heavens are higher than the earth,
So are God's ways above oar ways,
And his thoughts above our thoughts."

Job begins by assuming the Chaldean ground,
to a certain extent at least, saying, that if God's
ways contradict the rule of right, no man ought
to accept his person and justify his ways on that
account. He afterwards suffers himself to be se-
duced to the Pietislic ground ; for he afterwards
affirms that, though God's justice is not manifest
at present — ultimately all things will come out in
a way to enable us to see that God had subjected
his action throughout to the rule of right. Job's
friends never once abandon the pietistic position.

The Lord answered Job out of the whirlwind,
saying,

*' Shall he that contendeth with the Almighty instruct

him?
He that reproveth God, let him answer it !"

To which Job replied,

*' Behold I am vile ; what shall I answer thee?
I will lay mine hand upon my mouth.
Once have I spoken ; but I will not answer :
Yea twice ; but I will proceed no further."

5#

54 AN A PRIORI

After Job had seen the mighty power of God,
he answered again,

/ have uttered that I understood not !

Things too wonderful for me, which I knew not!

Hear, I beseech thee, and I will speak :

I will demand of thee, and declare thou unto me.

I have heard of thee by the hearing of the ear :

But now mine eye seeth thee.

Wherefore I abhor myself,

And repent in dust and ashes."

And how does the author of the poem defend
the Order of Providence ? does he show that all
turns out ultimately according to the moral law
made for men } Not at all. — When the Lord
speaks from the whirlwind (itself a symbol of pow-
er) he does not justify himself by showing his
ways to be just, as man understands justice.
There is not one word of human morality in the
whole speech attributed to the Absolute. Nay,
the whole discourse which proceeded out of the
whirlwind, turns on these two points, (1) Man is
weak, and without understanding ; (2) God is ab-
solute, creating all things according to the good
pleasure of his will. — And the conclusion of the
whole, is, evidently, that the moral law was made
for man, and that he that is wise will walk in ac-
cordance with it : also, that he who is wise, when
he thinks of the Absolute God, will say —

'^ Shall he that contendeth with the Almig-hty, instruct
him?"

AUTOBIOGRAPHY. 55

I had, as it appears to me, reproduced the open
pantheism of the early Patriarchal civilization :
but my case was very different from that of Job
and his cotemporaries, for they had a religion, since
God spake to them by inspired prophets. —

*' Men whose eyes were open spake unto them :

They spake, which heard the words of God,

And knew the knowledge given by the Most High,

Which saw the vision of the Almighty,

FaUing into a trance, but having their eyes open."

But as for me, I lived in the world without a
revelation, and my path before me wound through

'^ A land of darkness and the shadow of death ;
A land of darkness, as darkness itself;
And as the shadow of death, without any order,
Where the light was as darkness."

Second sub epoch : — that of reasoning in rea-
soning.

One day I sat dow^n almost overcome with the
burden of a problem that had haunted me for more
than a week. The question was this : — Are the
facts of memory an actual vision of the real ob-
jects which exist in nature, or are they pictures

56 AN A PRIORI

and representations, mere copies of those objects,
copies having no place out of the mind itself ? I
reasoned as follows : I can conceive of the solar
system, with the sun in the center, the planets re-
volving around the sun, and the moons around
their planets, — now the question arises, is this
internal conception identical with the objective
solar system itself, or is the whole a mere picture
or representation, a mere mental copy of that sys-
tem ? The affirmation that the conception is
identical with the outward object, is by no means
unplausible ; for whenever I observe the solar
system itself, a certain notion of it (a notion un-
doubtedly identical with the conception in ques-
tion) always arises to my mind. Moreover, when
I occupy ray thoughts with the notion thus ac-
quired, a most curious phenomenon invariably pre-
sents itself; for I am able to carry out and per-
fect this vague notion, correcting even some in-
accuracies of practical observation ; nay, more,
when I turn in upon myself and reflect and com-
pute, I find to my astonishment that I possess
more than I have received ; for I find myself able
to learn new things by contemplation of the inter-
nal conception, things which I certainly never ob-
served, and which I can verify by a more ex-
tended observation of the motion of the actual
and material stars. Now how am I able to ob-

AUTOBIOGRAPHY. 57

tain results, by private meditation, which corres-
pond exactly to outward facts, if the object per-
ceived in meditation be not identical with the ob-
ject perceived through the medium of the out-
ward senses ? — I see therefore, in internal medi-
tation, not a mere representation, but the real
natural object itself : only I see it through a dif-
ferent instrument, and in a different manner. In
one case I see the ^lar system with the eye of
the body, in the other I perceive it directly by
the internal, mental eye.

But I was not altogether satisfied with this con-
clusion. Indeed I have never been able to see
clearly the value and bearing of this speculation ;
but I write it down that the history may be com-
plete. If I held strongly to the order in which
the narration is written, I should perhaps leave
this circumstance out altogether : but, without
doubt, it has its value and place, although I am
not able at this lime to assign it its true position.*

* The reader will unquestionably perceive, nevertheless,
that the foregoing remarks are but an amplification or par-
aphrase, of a passage on one of the opening pages of the
*' Reform of the Understanding," by Spinoza, and that
they are introduced to serve as a sort of bridge of transi-
tion between the Patriarchal order of thought, and that
which prevailed in ancient Greece.

68 AN A PRIORI

As 1 remarked some pages back, I had deter-
mined to investigate questions carefully, weighing
the evidence relating to them, and then to act
as I thought a cool and rational man ought to act
under the circumstances. I thought of the vow I
had vowed in imitation of Jacob, and, weighing
all the circumstances connected with, and follow-
ing it, I concluded that the evidence seemed
fairly to indicate a direct interposition of Provi-
dence in my favor. If I had any doubts, they
were overweighed by my determination to act ac-
cording to conclusions founded on sufficient evi-
dence, whether my mind were satisfied or not.
I had promised, if the Lord brought the business
on which I was engaged to a prosperous conclu-
sion, to devote ten per cent, of my permanent in-
come to religious purposes. Now, although my
business had been eminently successful, so that
my income was oftentimes nearly double what I
had anticipated, I had not as yet put apart a sin-
gle dollar for the Divine Service. Evidently, if
I were to abide by my logical conclusions, I must
pay up : moreover, a sense of honor, and respect
for my word, required me to settle the account
immediately. The Lord had fulfilled his part of
this contract of my proposing, and it seemed to
me that I should be dishonored, if I failed to keep
my word. Sentiments of justice, and reverence

AUTOBIOGRAPHY. 69

to God, combined with a feeling that further hes-
itation under the circumstances, would be conduct
unbecoming a gentleman, led me to think it best
to commence a new course of action by paying
my just debts.

Immediately I enclosed a fifty dollar treasury
note in a letter, and sent it to a distinguished cler-
gyman. The letter ran as follows :

Sir :

Herewith enclosed, I transmit a Fifty Dollar
Treasury Note. You will confer a favor by dis-
tributing the money among the poor, making no
distinction whatever between the religious and the
irreligious poor. This letter is sent by one who
has a great respect for — but no belief in — the
Christian Religion.

I hesitated however, for a moment, about send-
ing this money to the Reverend Gentleman ; — for
I had so little faith in ministers that I feared he
might put it into his own waistcoat pocket, and let
the poor go. But I reflected that I had no way
of disposing of the money in the Lord's service,
and that, if the clergyman took it for himself, my
skirts were cleared, and he only was responsible.
So. after satisfying myself that the hand-writing

60 AN A PRIORI

was such as would enable no one to discover the
writer, I sent the letter off. Here was ten per
cent, of five hundred dollars accounted for. A
few days after, T sent twenty dollars in a blank
letter to an Orthodox Tract Society in New York
city : — if 1 had seen as many of their tracts then
as I have since, I should have disposed of this
money in some other w^ay. Here were two hun-
dred dollars more accounted for. After doing
this, I returned to my solitary reflections.

At this time, my attention was attracted to the
Laws of the Mathematical Curves. The com-
mon equation x^ + 2/^ = R^? represents, evi-
dently, the Circle itself ; for, by it, we can find
any point of a circle whose Radius is given. But
this equation merely furnishes an instrument by
which we can, at any moment, mark out the
points of the circle, and thus draw it : it does not
enlighten us in any way in respect to the Law,
the Nature, of the curve. But if, by differen-
tiating the equation, we obtain another equation,
\x d X -\- y d y = 0'\'f altogether independent of
the value of the radius, this differential equation
will be an expression, not of any particular circle,
but of the general nature of all circles. The or-
dinary equation gives us the relation of all the
points of the circle to the co-ordinate axes, but

AUTOBIOGRAPHY. 61

the differential equation gives us the relation of the
points of the circle to each other, and thus be-
comes an expression of the circularity of all cir-
cles. The differential equation is, therefore, the
Idea of the Platonists, stated in Mathematical
expressions. — But this may not be plain t® the
reader : I will illustrate this matter, therefore, in
another way, and afterwards proceed with the re-
marks which I proposed to make in this connec-
tion : —

Would it not astonish us if we were to see a
rose bush springing up from a lily seed ? From
the lily seed springs forth always the lily plant,
and, from other seed, other plants, according to
their kind. We may predict, with perfect cer-
tainty, the nature of the plant that will spring
from a particular seed. '' And God said, let the
earth bring forth grass, the herb yielding seed,
Etnd the fruit tree yielding fruit, after his kindy
whose seed is in itself upon the earth ; and it was
so." When the lily seed is placed in proper soil,
and begins to feel the influences of light, air,
moisture, &c., fhfluences concurring with the
force within itself, it swells and bursts, because
of the process of growth which commences.
First the root is put forth, afterward the stalk
arises with its bark, pores, and other external and
6

62 AN A PRIORI

internal arrangements, then the leaves show them-
selves, and, at last, the flower appears in the per-
fection of its beauty. But the root, bark, leaves,
flower, seeds, are always the root, bark, leaves,
flower, seeds, of the lily, and never of the rose or
violet. This permanency of result, indicates the
operation of some permanent cause ; for wherever
there is a change, there is of necessity some cause
for that change ; and wherever a series of chan-
ges bears a marked and permanent character, we
are driven to seek for some permanent cause ad-
equate to the production of that series of changes.
What is this secret cause which makes the lily
seed give birth always to the lily plant, and never
to the rose or violet ? — To avoid unnecessary
waste of words, let us agree to call this secret
cause, the Idea of the lily*

If we take a twig from a peach tree, and graft
it into a plum tree, the sap of the plum tree will
flow into the engrafted twig : the air, earth, water,
that feed the tree, will feed the twig ; and the cir-
cumstances of the peach twig will be in all respects
similar to those of the plum twigs which surround
it. It would seem, therefore, that this peach
twig should begin to bear plums : nevertheless, it
continues to bear peaches as it did while it lived
iii its parent tree. The bark, fibres, leaves, which

AUTOBIOGRAPHY. 63

grow on the twig, are always the bark, fibres,
leaves, of the peach tree, and never of the plum.
The twig always remains faithful to the law of its
kind ; it is always true to its Idea.

If it should be asked, Is not this same Idea a
pattern in the Divine Mind, according to which
all the individuals of a kind are moulded ? I should
answer as follows : If the ideas are patterns ac-
cording to which actual existences are moulded,
then, of necessity, actual existences are like^ they
resemble^ these patterns. But it is impossible
that actual things should resemble their ideas : for
example, if the lily be like its idea, then that idea
must be what we are accustomed to call an ideal
lily (using the expression as the artists use it)
resembling an actual lily : but, if these two re-
semble each other, there must be some power
which makes them to have a similarity ; there is
therefore some power ruling both the actual and
the ideal lily, making them to be like each other.
The Idea of the lily regulates, therefore, the ideal
lily as well as the actual one, and is, therefore,
different from them both. The Idea, therefore^
is not a pattern^ and things do not resemble their
Ideas. In fact, if the Idea be a pattern, and
things resemble their IdeaSj whenever we think
of things and their Ideas^ a new Idea will

64 AN A PRIOEI

rise up before the mind, which will be the Idea
of them all, forming and moulding them all. If
we consider this new Idea as a pattern, resem-
bling the former Idea and the things moulded ac-
cording to it, another Idea will rise up before
the mind, and so on to infinity — which is evidence
of the absurdity of the hypothesis ; for an infinite
series of this nature, always indicates the neglect
in our reasoning of some element of a causative
character.

But in this last paragraph, we have done noth-
ing but reproduce, and paraphrase, a passage in
the Parmenides of Plato relating to Causative
Forms (or Ideas) : * we have, therefore, repro-
duced, to a certain extent, the Ideal theory of
Plato.

But this Idea, which moulds and governs the
plant in all stages of its growth, is what in more
modern language, we are accustomed to call the
Law of the plant's growth. Now it is evident to
us, when we look round upon the world, that
everything moves, grows, and develops itself ac-
cording to Law. The planets move in their or-
bits according io Law. Man grows, moves, and

* See note D.

AUTOBIOGRAPHY. 65

thinks, according to Law, All things, even the
very grass under our feet, is subjected to Law,
And the knowledge of these laws is what we call
Wisdom; these laws, therefore, in their perfection
and fullness, are the object ©i WiSDO^i, or Wis-
dom ITSELF, objectively considered. We read,
in the Proverbs of Solonnon : —

*' The Lord by Wisdom hath founded the earth ;
By uQderstanding hath he established the heavens."

And again : —

*' I Wisdom dwell with prudence,

And find out knowledge of witty inventions ... .

The Lord possessed me in the beginning of his way,.

Before his works of old.

I was set up from everlasting,

From the beginning, or ever the earth was.

When there were no depths, I was brought forth.

When there were no fountains -abounding with

water ^ . . .
When he prepared the heavens — I was there :
When he set a compass on the face of the depth,
When he established the cloudy above.
When he strengthened the fountains of the deep.
When he gave to the sea his decree,
That the w^aters should not pass his commandment,
Then was I by him as one brought up with him ;
I was daily his delight, rejoicing always before him,.
Rejoicing in the habitable parts of his earth,
And my delights were with the Sons of Men."

6=^

66 AN A PRIORI

What Solomon calb Wisdom, Plato call§ Lo-
gosj or the Word ; and the Apostle John, writ-
ing in Greek, reproduces this passage from Sol-
omon, borrowing the technical language of the
Platonic Philosophy, saying, '' In the beginning
was the Word, and the Word was with God, aqd
the Word was God . • . . By him were all
things made, and without him was not anything
made that was made."* What indeed is the re-
joicing of Wisdom, and her delights with the
sons of men, if it be not the outflowing of that
intellectual '^ Light which enlightens every man
that is born into the world." And what is the
Logos, or Word, if it be not the Mother and
Ground of Ideas, as, indeed, the Platonists af-
file that it is.

These thoughts passed through my mind, and
I at once supposed myself to have attained to a
c*nprehension of that doctrine of the Eternal
Word, or Wisdom of God, which prevailed
among all the nations of antiquity. — For the Word
was in the beginning toith God, because God is
essentially wise : and the Word was God, be-
cause no distinction can be drawn, which shall im-
ply an actual difference, between the Divine Sub-

See Note E.

AUTOBIOaRAPHY. 67

Stance, and that Infinite Intelligence which is the
ground of the Elernal Wisdom. As in a former
sub epoch, I had attained to believe in God, the
Eternal Father ; so now I had attained to be-
lieve in God, the Etpir-n^al WoUd. —

I continued my meditations : — Universal Na-
ture, if these things be so, must, of necessity,
actualize itself in an inferior and instinctive Pow-
er— a Power of itself neither creative nor initia-
tive, but a mere resultant of the operation of the
original forces. The action of this power is fatal-
ily : the form in which it manifests itself is neces-
sity (the power which binds the effect to the
cause) ; and the Power itself is Destiny. This
is the great Power that rules the world. All
things fall under the dominion of Destiny : for
everything comes to pass according to fore-or-
dained Laws. The plant is subjected to Law,
man also — yea, the whole Universe develops it-
self according to the Universal Idea, according
to the Universal Law marked out for it in eterni-
ty. Destiny, indeed, originates nothing : yet it
takes possession of all things as soon as they be-
gin to exist. It governs all actions^ and all con-
sequences which flow from actions. Every act
of life is predetermined in the order of Destiny,
by actions which precede it. It is not by our

68 AN A PRIORI

own will that we appear In the world, in the pres-
ent epoch of civilization, and with the characters
we possess. It is not by our own will that we
are surrounded by the circumstances which do in
fact surround us. As soon as we perform an
act, that act escapes us — it came from the order
of Destiny, and it falls into the order of Destiny.
Every one of our acts possesses a certain vitality,
as it were, and immediately gives biith to another
act, which perhaps we did not foresee, and this
other act gives birth to still another, which we
certainly did not foresee, and this last to still an-
other, and so on through all eternity. Nothing is
lost which is committed to the ever revolving
wheel of Nature. Men who lived in ancient times
originated acts, which, under the control of Desti-
ny, reproduced themselves in ever varying forms,
are reproducing themselves now, and will repro-
duce themselves forever. These acts, in their
mediate consequences, operate upon us, and form
part of the circumstances by which our conduct
is fatally determined. Would I possess the
thoughts which now occupy my mind, if Moses
and Plato had not revolutionized the whole world
with their startling doctrines ? Moses and Plato
confided their doctrines to the soil of Destiny :
they planted the germs in individual minds, and
behold, those germs have produced trees which

AUTOBIOGRAPHY. 69

overshadow the whole human race. Verily has
the Master said, '^ For every idle word that ye
speak, ye shall give an account thereof at the Day
of Judgment." All the acts of my life are de-
termined fatally by operations of Nature which
took place before I was born : I also, in like man-
ner, am now concurring with Nature, in fatally
moulding the conduct of the generations that shall
come after me.

If I plant an acorn in proper soil, the power of
Destiny will take possession of that acorn and
bring forth from it a mighty oak. For the Law
operates always. If I crush the acorn with a
stone, do I thereby destroy its Destiny ? No,
I merely change it ; for a new Destiny commences
immediately for it. The fragments become de-
composed according to fixed, fatal, and irresista-
ble Laws ; and the elements which were united in
the composition of the acorn, separate from each
other, entering into new relations, in accordance
with the motion of the ever-revolving wheel of na-
ture— and this wheel revolves always according to
Universal Law.

But God, I continued, does everything accord-
ing to the Word, according to his Infinite Wis-
dom ; and therefore does everything in the best

TO AN A PRIORI

way possible. Now can there be more than one
best way possible ? Evidently, every way beside
that one is, in comparison, a bad way. God,
therefore, cannot, by any possibility, act except
in one particular way : he, therefore, is absolute-
ly determined in all his acts : he, therefore, is not
free ; for he can act only in one way, viz. : in the
way determined by his own Infinite Wisdom. No
place can be found in God for human desires,
passions, and infirmities : and, because his acts are
invariably in accordance with the highest Wis-
dom, there is in him an absolutely unbending se-
verity. God cannot exercise any mercy, he can-
not forgive any sinner out and out ; for, by so
doing, he would alter the course of nature which
he has established in the world. But, if he alter
that course, it is because such an alteration is
wise : but, if such alteration be wise, then the
original course of nature was not founded in wis-
dom ; for a course of nature founded in wisdom
permits of no alteration. God is immutable ; for,
if he be mutable, he is not infinitely wise, and,
therefore, is not God, by the definition. The
order of nature is so arranged that transgression
always brings suffering — this is God's Law, the
expression of the Divine Wisdom, and the opera-
tion of God's Word in the world. If, out of
mere mercy, God forgive any man, then he vio-

AUTOBIOGRAPHY. 71

lates the actual order of the Universe by an arbi-
trary act, and for the sake of a mere individual.
But this individual has no existence except through
virtue of the eternal order ; and God destroys this
very order if he reverses it by an arbitrary act.
Of necessity, therefore, God is just, but implaca-
ble, merciless. God is holy and just ; but it is
impossible that he should be FREE.

It is absurd to address prayer to God ; for, if
he hear it, it is as though he heard it not ; for he is
so trammelled by his own perfections that he
cannot answer it. We cannot change the immuta-
ble God by our feeble prayers : for how can he
answer prayer without doing violence to his own
justice, and reversing the order of the Universe ?
Verily the Christians are right when they say that
no sinner can be forgiven except through the cru-
cifixion of the Eternal Word : but verily they are
extremely absurd also ; for how can the Word of
God, which is not a personal being, suffer cruci-
fixion, and the pains of a man ? And how can
we affirm that God has reversed his Infinite Wis-
dom, without charging him with folly, and thus
affirming — by definition — that he is not God ?

I concluded, therefore, that all fellowship be-
tween him and me, was indeed impossible. How

72 AN A PRIORI

can any fellowship exist between him and me,
seeing he is altogether devoid of human feeling,
knowing no mercy, but only immutability, and un-
varying obedience to the decisions of his own In-
finite Wisdom ? I pictured God in my imagina-
tion, under the form of an immense cloud, part of
which was dark with internal thunders, and part
lighted up with intense glories.

Third sub epoch : — realization in reasoning,

I began now to occupy myself with the practi-
cal bearing of these speculations. What, I in-
quired, is the rule of life which I ought to obey } —
Evidently, neither God nor I are free ; there is
no freedom in the universe. God acts inevitably
according to his Wisdom, and I act inevitably
according to the circumstances in which I am
placed, taken in their connection with my pas-
sions, and the means of information God has given
me. As it belongs to God to act according to
his Wisdom, so it belongs to me to act as nearly
as I can in accordance with the character God
has given me. The nearer I keep to my origiiial

AUTOBIOGRAPHY. 73

character, the truer will be my position, and, con-
sequently, the better off I shall be. But what is
the fundamental element of my character ? Evi-
dently, the passion for self-preservation and self-
protection. How shall I gratify this passion ? I
can answer this question only by a profound study
of the Order of the Universe, and of the Law of
God. I will begin, therefore, by giving up all
thoughts of freedom : I will not ask to be free,
for that is impossible ; I ask only to be complete
according to my kind. What then is the Idea
of man? What, for man, is the Law of the
kind ? By living in accordance with the Idea,
I shall obtain within myself all the happiness that
is possible for me.

But, I reflected, I live in the midst of men, in
the turmoil of envy, hatred, and jealousy ; and,
without doubt, I shall not be permitted to live
tranquilly in accordance with the Idea. How
then shall I protect myself against the encroach-
ments of my neighbors ? I answered that this
question, (though it differed theoretically) was the
same practically with the one that presented itself
to me while I was in the Chaldean sub epoch.
Then I was an Atheist, and now I was a Panthe-
ist ; but, though my relations to God were changed,
my relations to man remained the same. I would,

7

74 AN A PRIORI

therefore, submit to God, but be a Chaldean to
my neighbor.

I would let men understand that it was danger-
ous to meddle with me. If a man should circum-
vent me now, and injure me, I would wait my
time, but revenge myself with interest as soon as
opportunity should offer. Thus men would take
warning, learning in a short time to respect my
rights and feelings, and to refrain from all tres-
passes on my premises. Is not the passion for
revenge implanted in the very depths of my na-
ture ? God will not forgive me when I violate his
laws, neither will I forgive any man who trespasses
on my rights.

But here a new thought struck me : suppose,
I said, a man should injure me, and then come to
me, humbling himself before me, confessing his
fault, and expressing penitence for what he had
done — would I forgive this man, because he had
humbled himself before me? No, I answered,
never ! — My vengeance shall be as swift, unswerv-
ing, and unrelenting, as is the motion of the stars
of heaven in their courses. Is God moved by
pity ? I would exult in the humiliation of my
enemy, and then I would annihilate him. This
thought took my fancy, and excited ray imagina-

AUTOBIOGRAPHY. 75

tion : I endeavored to form a distinct conception
of the whole matter, and of the way I would be-
have under the circumstances. So I pictured to
myself, in imagination, the whole scene, the hu-
miliation of my enemy, and my own triumph. I
went through the whole history of the ideal trans-
action ; I dwelt on all the details of the injury to
myself till my wrath was fully roused ; I paused
at every incident of my enemy's humiliation, that I
might lose no possible sentiment of triumph ; and
thus I went on, in imagination, till the time came
to strike the fatal blow — when, lo ! a singular
phenomenon astonished me. I had no strength to
strike the blow ; for no feeling remained in my
mind, save an earnest pity for my enemy, which
moved me almost to tears. I saw, at once, that
my remorseless cruelty was in theory and imagi-
nation only, that it was a mere result of my spec
ulations, that it came merely from a superficial
perversion of feeling occasioned by false views.
I found that 1 had really been all along a man
overflowing with the milk of human kindness. I
found that all my bloody theories would long be-
fore have vanished into thin air, if I had come so
near their practical realization as even to have
formed a distinct conception of such a realization.
I found that all along, even in my Chaldean bit-
terness, I should have hastened — yea, rejoiced —

76 AN A PRIOKI

to forgive any one who had injured me, upon the
first symptonrj of sorrow on his part. But this in-
tense sentiment of pity, carried me back into my
soul, far toward the foundation of my being, lill I
became conscious of the presence of regions of
existence I had never penetrated before. — All at
once, I sprang forward with a shout of joy ; for,
in the very depth of my being, I had discovered
that I myself, was an Efficient Cause. My
whole physical system was affected. My theories
seemed to rush violently back into non-existence.
The whole universe, as I had conceived it, fell
into the abyss ; my brain swam, the circulation of
my blood was disordered ; 1 seemed to see hea-
ven and earth cracking and separating into frag-
ments around me, and the fragments seemed to be
swept away as by a mighty whirlwind, amid the
rolling and crashing of universal thunders.

I had, indeed, become really ill. But in the
midst of the excitement of my physical system, this
great formula seemed to be continually repeating
itself : — Life is the activity of an Efficient Cause^
Life is the activity of an Efficient Cause.*
I saw that I had unconsciously built up all my
speculations upon the premiss that I myself was
dead : and now when the evidence to my mind

* See Note F.

AUTOBIOGHAPHY. 77

was irresistible that I was ALIVE, an efficient
cause^ that is, A free agent,"^ no one can tell
how I loathed the practical conclusions of all my
preceding theories.

I expected a great deal from this formula which
thus revealed itself to me, in the midst of a tu-
mult of thought ; and, verily, I was not disap-
pointed : for, first of all, it utterly annihilated my
Pantheism. I reasoned as follows : —

I am revealed to myself, by observation in con-
sciousness^ as TRANSCENDma TIME : for I per-
ceive the facts of my memory, and say of them.
They are facts of memory, and I contradistinguish
myself from them in consciousness — therefore
they are not me. I am not a fact of memory, but
a living, perceiving, subject. I see also the re-
lation between these facts <)f memory, and call it
time ; but say, it is a relation between things
which are not me^ and, therefore, it also is not
me. I perceive it — it is time. Time is the re-
lation in which the facts of memory stand to each
other, and not the relation in which they stand to
me. The events and their relation, stand before
me in the relation of objects perceived ; but to

Note G.*

7*

78 AN A PRIORI

each other they stand in the relation o{ time. To
me, a transaction of ten years date is as present
as an affair of yesterday — for if it were not thus
present, I should not be able to see its relation
to the affair of yesterday, affirming that it took
place exactly ten years ago, all but one day. I
contradistinguish myself from time, and am inde-
pendent of it : nevertheless, all my acts fall in
time. When I perceive, think, will, the percep-
tion, thought, volition, is an act which is an event,
following some events, and preceding others ;
but /, who originate these events, remain still
transcending time ; for only the acts, and not the
/, find a place in time. The /, therefore, is in
ETERNITY, but cxists in time.

If we abstract from the soul, its active exis-
tence, there will remain its essential Beings which
is rooted in eternity — not an eternity which is
time indefinitely extended, but an eternity alto-
gether independent of time, having nothing in com-
mon with time, for it altogether transcends it. It
is a matter of no importance to me, if some men
see fit not to understand all this ; for they are
unable to understand it, because they are incapa-
ble of that observation in consciousness wherein
the soul perceives itself as subject — wherein the
soul perceives itself, not as thought, feeling,

AUTOBIOGRAPHY. 79

volition, but as the / which thinks, feels and wills.
I perceive myself in consciousness, not as an ac-
tivity, but as the efficient cause which exerts an
activity. I know that I shall not be annihilated
when my activity ceases, but that I shall merely
hold my activity in potentia^ ready to deploy it
again when the moment comes. This /, this ef-
ficient cause^ this essential being of the soul,
could not have been created at any former time,*
neither can it be annihilated at any future lime,
because it is in eternity^ in an eternal NOW ; and,
if it is once, that once is eternity : there is no be-
fore or after for it.

I perceive myself in consciousness as an effi-
cient cause. By efficient cause I mean a cause
which operates by virtue of efHciency inhering in
itself — I mean a cause which is itself the ground,
origin, and reason, of its own activity. Without
doubt, 1 have a notion of efficiency^ which notion
I could have obtained from no source whatever
other than the observation of the activity of my
own soul. In the outward world I perceive only
effects — will any man pretend that he ever per-
ceived an efficient cause in the external world ?
He may indeed have perceived the operation of

* See Note H.

80 AN A PRIORI

such a cause, but he surely never perceived the
cause itself. If I perceive the Divine activity, I
perceive only the activity, and never the Efficient
Cause which is the Divine Substance. Will any
one pretend that he has seen God directly ? —
Does not the very fact of our possessing a notion
of efficiency, prove the existence of the efficiency
which inheres in our own souls ? But what is
all this reasoning to me ? After prolonged medi-
tation, I have attained to be able to carry on in-
vestigations in ray own consciousness : I am able,
on rare occasions, to perceive myself directly, as
an efficient cause — as subject: and, by more ex-
tended observation, 1 find that nowhere else can 1
directly observe any efficiency .

What then becomes of Pantheism, which is the
doctrine that God is the only efficient cause ? It
vanishes at once. For, if God be the oiily effi-
cient cause, then my proposition that /am an ef-
ficient cause, is false : but the proposition that
God is the only efficient cause is one in favor of
which no positive argument can be adduced,
while the proposition that /am an efficient cause
is proved by direct observation in consciousness.
It is evident that I am an efficient cause ; but it
is by no means equally evident that God also is
an efficient cause. The question of the Divine

AtTOBIOGEAPHY. 81

Activity is left very much in the dark : — but, con-
cerning my efficiency, in other words, my freedom^
there is no room for any question whatever.

There is, therefore, another Power in the
world, one that is superior to Destiny; for this
new Power is able, by becoming acquainted with
the Laws of Destiny, to outflank and outwit it.
This Power is the Will of Man. If I take a
wild and bitter fruit, which has hitherto been under
the sole power of Destiny, and plant it in good
ground, carefully cultivating the tree which springs
from it, the fruit which this tree will bear, will be
better than the seed that was planted ; and the
tree may be made to bear still better fruit, by
further cultivation. Without this cultivation,
which is an effect of my efficiency^ the fruit would
have remained bitter and worthless. When I
have one tree thus improved by cultivation, I may,
by the process of grafting, change the destinies of
thousands of others. — Every act I perform, falls
under the dominion of Destiny, and produces a
necessary effect on my character : by taking ad-
vantage of this operation, 1 am able to cultivate
good habits, and to eradicate the evil habits I have
already formed. For every act originated by my-
self, and confided to Destiny, is like seed cast
into good ground, and will bring forth fruit an

82 AN A PRIORI

hundred fold. Through the force of my Will, T
am able to suffer down the consequences of past
evil actions, and thus to destroy them. Destiny
is indeed a Power that operates by Laws inde-
pendent of my control, but that is no reason why
there should be any enmity between me and it ;
for it is, as it were, a farm that I inherit : if I
plant it with thistles, I ^shall be obliged to labor
very hard to fit it again for useful cultivation ; but
if I plant it with wheat, I shall in due time reap
the fruit of my labors. No farmer complains of
his farm because it yields abundantly according to
the seed which is planted, but on the contrary re-
joices : so ought we to rejoice that in the great field
of Destiny, we shall reap even as we have sown.
I saw, however, if I would gather from my new
formula, all the practical conclusions it was capa-
ble of furnishing, that |it would be necessary for
me to investigate carefully the true nature of this
new Power, the Will of Man. I continued my
inquiries, therefore, as follows : —

The soul is an efiBcient cause ; and (even if we
admit that it sometimes ceases its activity for a
moment) we must acknowledge that it holds all
its actions in potentia, we must acknowledge that
it tends always toward actual existence in outward
relations. Moreover, Life is the Activity of an

AUTOBIOGRAPHY. 83

Efficient Cause : — even a child will acknowledge
this ; for when he sees a small substance on the
branch of a tree, and is in doubt whether it is a
piece of bark or a living insect, he will watch
closely to see whether the object moves itself. If
the child think the matter may have been moved
by the wind, he will hazard no affirmation ; but as
soon as he is satisfied that it moves itself^ he says
at once, '^It is alive^ for it moves itself.^^ I
recognize myself, in consciousness, as a Living
Being, that is, as an Efficient Cause : — Now what
is the internal, or essential nature of this Cause
which I call / ? If I abstract all life from the
/ (the cause I perceive in consciousness) — if I
abstract from it all activity, all that comes from its
outgoing motion, there will remain the capability
or faculty which the soul possesses of acting — of
living. Now what is the character of this facul-
ty ? — I answer (1) it is a faculty of exerting an
activity J for the soul is revealed to itself as an effi-
cient cause ; I answer (2) it is a faculty of ex-
erting an intelligent activity, for, in all its acts, the
soul perceives itself as an active and intelligent
agent. I affirm, therefore, that the soul is a Will ;
for what is a Will if it be not a Power that exerts
its own activity in accordance with its own essen-
tial intelligence ? The soul is, therefore, not only
an efficient cause, and consequently a vital princi-

84 AN A PKIORI

pie, it is also an efficient cause which is an intel-
ligence, and is consequently an intelligent and vol-
untary vital principle. Moreover, because the
soul is in eternity^ all its acts v^hich we designate
from the stand-point of tinne, as past, present, or
to come, are potentially present to it in the eter-
nal now where it is : although, indeed, these acts
cannot be actually present to the soul except as
they reveal themselves actually to it in time. The
soul is therefore, potentially (1) An Activity, (2)
An Intelligence (3) A Memory.

This formula is by no means new ; for, accord-
ing to Saint Ambrose, — " In like manner as the
Son is engendered from the Father, and as from
the Father and the Son proceeds the Holy Ghost,
so the loill is begotten from the intelligence^ and
memory proceeds from the two. The soul is not
perfect without this triad ; for, if one of these be
wanting, the others are rendered imperfect. And
as God the Father, God the Son, and God the
Holy Ghost, are not three Gods, but a single
God in three persons, so the soul-intelligence^
the soul'icilL^ and the soul-memory^ are not three
souls, but one soul in three powers. — A parallel
passage may be found in the writings of Alcuin,
preceptor at the court of Charlemagne.

AUTOBIOGRAPHY. 85

Evidently, however, this formula of the triple
nature of the soul is a formula very useless in it-
self; for it is a formula of the soul in potentia,
that is, of the soul as dead — devoid of all activity,
all life. — ^What is the formula of the soul in its
activity, the formula not of the dead soul, but of
the soul in its life ?

Though the soul is an efficient cause, yet, it is
not an absolute^ but a relative^ efficient cause -:
though it acts by virtue of efficiency inhering with-
in itself, yet it is dependent upon that which is not
itself for an opportunity to operate. — This ap-
peared to me, at first sight, to be a contradiction ;
but I went on : — After all there is no contradic-
tion in this statement ; for I am a living man, an
efficient cause, but cannot exercise my power
except in concurrence with something which is nat
myself : for example, I cannot think without I
have something to think about^ for certainly I can-
not think without thinking of something ; yet it is
/that think. I am an active intelligence ; never-
theless I cannot exert my intelligent power ex-
cept upon something capable of becoming an ob-
ject of thought. In like manner, I cannot remem-
ber anything, if there be nothing to be remember-
ed. Though I have my being in potential as in-

telligence-memory-will, and have this being

8

86 AN A PRIORI

within myself, independently of everything which
is not myself, yet 1 have no life in myself alone ;
for, in every act of life, I am in concurrence with
that which is not myself — / think somethings I re-
member something : in every act of life I am
brought into relations with that which is the ob-
ject of that act. If, therefore, the relation be
destroyed, I cease from all activity, enter the po-
tential state, that is, die : for death is not the de-
struction of the soul's being, but a cessation of its
life, and a withdrawal of the soul from actual ex-
istence.

But what, I inquired, is the means by which I
am brought into relations "with that which is not
myself ? In other words, what are the condi-
tions of my life ? — Evidently (I answered) I am
brought into these relations through the medium
of my body, of my physical frame. The ques-
tion, therefore, complicates itself still further ; and
I must adjourn all hope of obtaining a solution of
my difficulties, until after I have obtained some
satisfactory knowledge in relation to my physical
system.

What then may I know of my bodily nature ?
what can I understand concerning this instrument
which I call my physical system ? — *

* See Note H.

AUTOBIOGRAPHY. 87

*Embryogonists have recognised that the hu-
man embryo, in the process of its growth, passes
from an amphibious slate to that of a polypus, af-
terward to that of an annelid, then to that of a
fish ; after this it resembles the form of the reptile,
then that of the bird, then that of the mammifer,
until, lastly, the organic character which specifies
man, manifests itself. But these last acts of
growth are perceptible only in the development of
the nervous system ; for the outward form takes
the human appearance as early as the stage in
which the nervous system reminds us of that of
the reptile. Thus the human organism traverses
all living forms, gathering up and preserving in
each one of them, so much, among the elements
of these forms, as agrees with the definitive exis-
tence to which it is destined. Not that man is
even truly a polypus, a reptile, or a bird, for,
from the beginning the germ contains the promise
and prophecy of its ultimate form. We may say,
therefore, that the system of man contains, in its
degrees of relative development, all that exists in
the other animals, plus that which is proper to our
species.

* A Complete Treatise of Philosophy, by P. J. B. Bu-
chez. 3 vols. 8 mo. Paris, 1838. Vital Dynamics, by J.
H. Green, F. R. S. London, 1840.

88 AN A PRIORI

The geologists, by examining the strata which
form the crust of the earth, have discovered that
the different orders of animated existence made
their appearance in the world successively, the
lowest and simplest appearing first, and the others
following in a regular ascending series. This se-
ries is the same with the one furnished by the
embryonic history of the human being, who re-
produces, inTiis various changes (passing from one
form to another, before he sees the light of the
sun,) the history of the pre-Adamite animal crea-
tion— a history well set forth, in the account of
the first five days, or indefinite epochs, of crea-
tion, in the Berseshith of Moses.

But as man, in his physical system, seems ta
sum up the physical systems of the whole animal
creation, so, in his passional nature, he seems to
sum up the passional natures of all the lower ani-
mals. In diseases, the minor centers of nervous
activity exert themselves to a certain extent
independently of the principal center ; and, on
these occasions, man seems sometimes to mani-
fest a nature which is animal rather than human.
We know that insanity and mania have their ori-
gin in disorder of the body. We know that dif-
ferent diseases, affecting different organs of the
body, cause the manifestation in the patient of

AUTOBIOGRAPHY. 89

different passions and dispositions. All the na-
tural appetencies and simple propensitiesj may be
excited by the action of drugs on the physical sys-
tem ; so that we are authorised to conclude that
these appetencies and propensities have their seat,
not in the soul, but in the body. The soul, which
is pure activity^ pure intelligence^ and pure mem-
ory^ does not manifest its activity in its pure state ;
for it is not in direct relation with that which is
not itself, since it acts always through the body.
Thus the activity of the soul is coloured^ as it
were, by the medium through which it passes.
As it proceeds from the soul, it is pure activity,
but as it appears after undergoing transformation
by the physical medium, it is appetency^ which is
the first form of passion. The soul furnishes the
activity^ which is indeed the Zi/e, but the body,,
growing and developing itself under Law, in the
order of Destiny, limits and defines the activity or
life, by furnishing the conditions and occasions, in
which it can be manifested. The destiny of the
living being is to a great extent determined by the
capabilities and adaptations of the body, for the
soul can act in the material world only under ma-
terial conditions, and these conditions are given it
in the body in which it lives.

When the appetencies are transformed by the
8*

9Q AN A PRIORI

action of intelligence upon them, they become
passions ; and then the mere animal instinct is
changed, so that it is no longer animal, but human.

Thus it appears that there can be no real life,
no human tendency, sympathy and passion, except
when the soul is in connection with the body*
Thus it appears fully, though we are potentially
will-intelligence-memory, that we are passion-
sympathy-sentiment only so long as we dwell in
a body. Thus it appears that when we are sep-
arated from the body, we at once re-enter the pa-
tential state, that is, die, that is, again, cease from
all existence^ retaining only our essential being.

But these conclusions troubled me. Have I
not now, 1 asked, reversed all that 1 have hither»
to established in this sub epoch of my history ?
Have I not brought the Will of Man once more
into total subjection to Destiny 9 If I am free
according to my intelligent beings am I not en-
slaved according to my passional existence ? And
am I not governed in all my acts by OUTWARD
MOTIVES, which operate upon me according to my
passional existence ? I received some satisfac-
tion by reflecting that there can by no possibility
be any such thing as an outward motive. I re-
flected as follows :

AUTOBIOGRAPHY. 91

That which operates upon my body, is a mere
mechanical influence, a mere transmission of mo-
tion ; for, if I were dead, if the soul were absent,
the operation on the body could have no effect
higher tlian that of a displacement of material par-
ticles. A dead man is not susceptible to the
power of motives. What then is a motive 9 It
is the outward influence, perceived by the living
soul, and transformed by the living soul, till it is no
longer a mere outward influence, a mere trans-
mission of material motion, but something far
higher than this, viz : an inioard motive for the
soul's action. That which is outward in the mo-
tive, is the mere material motion, but that which
is in reality the motive, that which aff^ects the
Will of Man, is tivingly created from within, by
the Living Force which is the Will of Man. The
motive, so far forth as it is motive, is created by
the Living Soul, and the creator is not subject
unto the creature : morover, the motive^ is inicarJ,
and not outward.

But my satisfaction was not complete ; for the
body, which evidently falls under the Power of
Destiny, appeared to intervene, to too great an
extent, in determining the circumstances in which
it was possible for my Living Soul to act. The
qu6Stion of the relation of the Will of Man to the
Power of Destiny, tormented me again.

92 AN A PRIORI

Lale reading, too much study, and prolonged
bodily disease, had by this time so affected me,
that a sudden and strong change of thought was
sufficient to disturb my whole physical system.
One evening, while I was in a reclining posture,
meditating upon Free Will and Fate, I fell into a
sort of trance : I was neither awake nor asleep,
but in a state bordering on ecstacy. At once, all
distinct thought vanished from my mind, no object
presented itself to my imagination ; but the abyss,
with all its emptiness spread itself before me.
Then came a certain something that was invisi-
ble, untangible, altogether vague, without charac-
ter, undefinable, which seemed to be premonitory
of something that was to follow. After this, I
felt the essential Being, which is my soul, the /,
moving itself as it were blindly forward into the
Abyss. I became at once conscious of my hid-
den potential Being, though not of its faculties.
Immediately, objects and images started up to
my imagination, and the potential force instantly
so coalesced with them, that I was conscious of
nothing but the contemplation in imagination of
the representation of a well known locality.

I had little difficulty in finding the meaning of
these phenomena. I saw, at once, that all my
trouble had come from my neglect to apply a

AUTOBIOGRAPHY. 93

sufficient stress of logic, when I endeavored to
trace out the consequences of the simple and evi-
dent fact that I was a relative^ and not an abso-
lute, efficient cause. It is hard to reconcile Lib-
erty and Necessity in a statement in words, but
the reconciliation is very simple in fact. It is
impossible, by any arithmetical process, to ex-
tract the square root of two exactly ; neverthe-
less, there is a square root of two, and it may be
constructed geometrically with perfect exactness ;
for the hypolhenuse of a right angled triangle,
having each side of the right angle equal to one, is
exactly the square root of two. Every act of
life is a perfect practical reconciliation of the
powers of free will and destiny. In fact, Life
may be defined as that which practically recon-
ciles liberty and necessity. Every act of life is,
at once, free and necessitated : free, because it
is originated by an efficient cause acting by its
own power, necessitated because this cause acts
in concurrence with the circumstances falling un-
der the dominion of Destiny. It is necessitated,
because no Vital Principle can manifest itself,
that is live^ except in relations to that which it
contradistinguishes from itself. We cannot ask
whether man be free or determined, in his actions ;
for he is at once free and determined.* The

* See Note J.

94 AN A PRIORI

true question is this : How far is man free, and
how far is he determined in his actions ? Every
act of man is on one side free, because that side
is originated by the self-acting power of the soul ;
and on the other determined, because that other
side is regulated by conditions originating in the
Order of Destiny.

The soul may be compared to a fountain of
water : if this fountain be situated in empty space,
and well forth into an infinite vacuum, without
bottom, without sides, if it be subjected to no law,
it will become infinitely attenuated, it will flow?
as it were, no where, and will produce no effect,
because there will be nothing on which it can pro"
duce an effect ; in like manner the soul, consid-
ered by itself apart, in its potential state, though
perfectly free, will do nothing ; because there is
no reason why it should do one thing rather than
another. A perfect Liberty, that is, a Will that
is determined by nothing but itself, will do nothing
whatever, but remain always in the potential
state — it will remain dead ; that is, without mani-
festation and activity, in which life consists. But,
if this fountain of water be situated on the surface
of the earth, where it can work its way between
hard banks, it will be confined, limited, and will
roll on, a noble and majestic river, taking its

AUTOBIOGRAPHY. 95

chara cter from the country through which it pass-
es, and itself conferring a character upon the
country wherever it flows. Alone, and by itself,
the soul, though containing immeasurable capabil-
ities, is altogether imperceptible ; but, defined and
limited by the objects with which it enters into
relation, it manifests itself, and becomes as the
noble river.

As the soul may overcome Destiny in the out-
w^ard course of nature, by studying its Laws, by
understanding it, and then make a mere servant
of it by bringing (through the originative power
of our own souls) new principles into its fatal
wheel of operation, thus cultivating it, making it
bring forth what we please, even as we cultivate
a field, gathering fruit from it, according to the
seed we sow, — so the soul may overcome Destiny
in the nearer sphere of our own bodies, by ope-
rating in like manner toward it. The soul may
make a servant of Destiny, but cannot separate
its actions from the movement of fatality ; and it
is well for us that this is so, for Destiny is the
most useful servant and instrument that is given to
man : it is a present worthy of the Universal
Power.

If a man live according to his instinctive ten-
dencies, he will be moved by the impulse of na-

96 AN A PRIORI

ture, and will be, like the animals, under the con-
trol of Destiny. If he live according to his rul-
ing passions, he will have escaped, to a certain
extent, from the power of Destiny ; because he
will live under powers which are destiny trans,
formed by the action of his own efficient nature.
If he live according to Wisdom, according to the
results of the action of his intelligence upon the
facts gathered from experience, and treasured up
in his memory, he will be /ree, and Destiny will
be his slave.

Upon further meditation, I found that these
were far from being the only conclusions which
a fair logic might draw from the principle that
our life is the activity of a relative efficient
cause. — This activity, which is our Life, is the
relation itself which subsists between us and the
object in concurrence with which we live : and
this is but another statement of the magnificent
formula of Pierre Leroux, that all Life is at
ONCE Subjective and Objective.

Moreover, all the relations between relative
causes, must be either (1) Self-existing, or (2)
originally depending on something which is not
themselves. But (I) no one of the relations
can be self-existing^ for then it would have an

AUTOBIOGRAPHY. 97

existence distinct, and to a certain extent sepa-
rate, from the causes related, and would continue
to subsist even after one or both of these causes
should have re-entered the potential stale — which
is simply absurd. The relations must, therefore,
be dependent upon something which is not them-
selves.

These relations must, then, originally* depend
either (1) on the causes related, or (2) on some
other cause or causes. Bui (1) No relation can
ever originally depend on the causes related ; for

* The objection, that perhaps the relation is self-existing
in time, that perhaps it was never oiiginally produced,
that go back as far as we will, it was already in exis-
tence— is untenable : this indeed is self-evident, but shall,
nevertheless, be demonstrated. That which is self-exist-
ing in time, if it exist once, must subsist always ; for, by
the fact of its self-existence, it is not self-destructive, but
self-existing ; nothing exterior to itself can ever destroy
it ; for, because it is self-existing, it has of necessity all
the conditions of its existence within itself, independently
of every thing which is not itself. Now a relation which
has changed, is no longer the same relation, but another :
but all the relations which subsist between relative causes,
change under our eyes at every movement : therefore
these relations, though they exist once, do not subsist
always; therefore, these relations are not self-existing in
time. Q. E. D. The hypothesis of the self-existence of
relative causes, cannot account for the existence of the
causes themselves ; much less can it account for the exis-
tence of their relations : for the 'mXex-dependence of those
causes (something very foreign to self-existence), is a
necessary prior condition of the existence of the relation

9

9S AN A PRIOEI

the simple reason that these causes never could
have originally brought themselves into relation,
if they had not, even before that original act, been
already in relations. For, if causes come into
relations by their own act, influencing each other
so that they shall henceforth act in concurrence,
this act of coming into concurrence is itself an
act of concurrence, that is, in relations : so we
have the absurd consequence of an original con-
currence going before the very first concurrence.
The supposition, therefore, shuts itself out from
all possibility of existence. The relation, there-
fore, depends 'upon some cause or causes other
than the causes related.

It depends then, either (1) on some multiplic-
ity of causes other than the causes related, or (2)
upon some single cause other than the causes
related. But if (1) it depends on a multiplicity
of causes, then those causes on which it depends
are in certain relations to each other ; for they
concur in causing this relation to exist. In this
case, therefore, we have only passed from one
problem to another identical with it ; for the re-
lation between the causes which cause the first
relation to exist, must itself be caused either (1)
by a multiplicity of causes, or (2) by a single
cause. If it be caused by a multiplicity of causes,

AUTOBIOGRAPHY. 90

ihe same problem presents itself again, and so
we may go on to infinity, unless we meet with
some single cause on which all the relations de-
pend. And we must meet with such a single
cause, otherwise we shall have the absurdity of an
infinite series originating from, and depending on,
nothing at all, while each term of the series, even
the very first, is dependent upon, and originated
from, something which precedes it. Therefore
the existence of causes in relations^ implies ne-
cessarily that there is a cause which is not in re-
lations.

I have reproduced this argument as well as I
could, for it passed through my mind so rapidly
that I was not conscious of the steps. But all
this reasoning is to no purpose. The following
proposition and conclusion, if rightly considered,
are self-evident : —

If there were no Absolute Efficient Cause,
there could be no relative efficient causes :
but there are relative efficient causes, there-
fore, the Absolute Efficient Cause IS.

The necessary corrollary followed at once : —
But every efficient cause is ALIVE, therefore

100 AN A PRIORI

the Absolute Efficient Cause is Alive. I
believe, therefore, in the Living God.*

All this was new to nrje, and I felt I had now
received the key to all my difficulties. There
was still another power in the world, a power as
much superior to the Will of Man, as the Will of
Man is superior to Destiny. f This new Power
is the Will of God, and its action is Provi-
dence. Destiny subsists notwithstanding the op-
eration of the Will of Man ; in like manner, the
Will of Man subsists notwithstanding the operation
of the Will of God. God is alive and I am
alive, there is therefore possibility of communion
and fellowship between him and me. Because
God is alive, he can hear and answer prayer ;
he, therefore, is free ; communion and fellowship
with him is, therefore practicable. What if he
will not answer ! — yet I know that the Living
God hears me, and if I speak to him in prayer, I
have some communion with him of necessity.
Besides, he does answer! all the works of na-
ture, his daily Providences, are the result of his
infinite, free, and rational will, and, therefore,
every one of his acts is a word spoken to man.
There is communion between God and man ; for

* See Note K. f See Note L*

AUTOBIOGRAPHY. 101

he speaks to us through his Providences if he will
but listen to his words, and we can speak to him
through prayer. Because God is alive, he is,
in a certain sense human^ and men, of a very
truth, are created in his image. And because
he is, in a certain sense, human^ he rejoices in
every free-agent, every efficient power acting from
itself, that comes into voluntary communion with
him. — My feelings as I thus found myself brought
into the immediate presence of God, are precisely
of that nature, which I do not feel disposed to
describe to the reader.

I said, I will commune with God ! So I en-
deavored to pray. I asked. Is it then possible
that / have faith ? I answered, Of course, I have
faith, would I be endeavoring to pray if I had
not faith ? Would I have endeavored to pray
yesterday ? So 1 was obliged to place myself
in an attitude of prayer, and remain there for some
time, before I could become convinced that I had
faith. Th^n I wished I could meet with some
Christian : 1 should have preferred some Metho-
dist ignorant of philosophy, but learned in the
religion of christian practice ; but my love went
forth toward every cMie who bore the name of
Christ.

9*

102 AN A PRIORI

God is ALIVE, I said to myself ; he is free,
and can forgive men out and out ; and this is what
renders fellowship with him possible. The Order
of Providence overrides both the Will of Man
and Destiny, yet leaves them both intact. As
man may modify the Order of Destiny, and yet
has no control over the Power of Destiny, which
operates according to its own Laws, altogether
independently of Man, so God may modify the
operation of the Will of Man and that of Destiny,
leaving the Will of Man an independant Power,
acting always from itself, by its own energy — for
the objects with which man's will concurs, are al-
ways in the hand of God. Who can say, there-
fore, that God, in the order of his Providence,
has not sown a divine seed in the midst of the
movements of Man's Will and Destiny, which
shall ultimately bear fruit to the redemption of
both man and nature ? Who knows but that he
may have sent into the world a Son— an embodi-
ment of his Eternal Word ? If he have done a
thing of this kind, his act is a movement impressed
on the revolving wheel of Destiny ; and that
movement must have reproduced itself in ever in-
creasing circles, until the result come at last to
act upon me. If he have given such an impulse
at any past time, to the operation of Destiny,
changing for a moment its fatal action, and thus

AUTOBIOGRAPHY. 103

forever altering the direction of its results, that
inipulse must be a leaven which has been working,
since that time, to the leavening of the whole
course of nature. If anything of this kind has
really happened, the Divine Act is an event, fall-
ing under the conditions of time, and must be
verified, like every other event, not by metaphys-
ical speculation, but by the evidences w^hich sub-
sist in relation to it, evidence preserved in the or-
der of Destiny.

So I opened the New Testament again, and
read, and was convinced of its truth. My new
experience had brdught me to the love of God,
the love of truth, and the hatred of wickedness.
I felt that I had come to a knowledge of the truth
by bringing my own Will under subjection to the
Divine Will, and by this means only. Through
the resignation and abandonment of myself (and,
as I was a Power acting from myself, I had some-
thing to resign) I came to possess a state of
feeling I had never experienced before. I knew
also that no man could attain to this state except
through the same self-abandonment and resigna-
tion to God. When I read the gospel of John,
I found that the Aposde possessed the same feel-
ings which I had lately become able to appreciate.
John could not have written as he did, unless he

104 AN A PRIORI

wrote out of his own heart ; for no man is able
to give a clear and perfect description of a sphere
of truth which altogether transcends his nature
and experience. But no man in this state can,
by any possibility, lie knowingly. All lies come
from the Will of Man ; and all pious frauds come
from the conviction in the minds of their authors
that the order of God's Will is not holy enough.
But God's Will was evidently, for John, the per-
fect rule and measure of holiness : he was there-
fore morally incapable of a pious fraud. And,
intellectually, the construction of the doctrines set
forth in his gospel, would have been altogether
impossible for one who did not fully believe, and
live, in them. John bore testimony to the facts
of the Saviour's Life, and I believed John.

Moreover, there is no doubt, historically, of
the genuineness of the greater number of Paul's
Epistles to the Churches ; for it would have been
impossible, during Paul's life time, to have palm-
ed them off on the Churches, if they had not
been really written by the Apostle. Again, if
they had been forgeries, they could not have been
palmed off on the Churches after the Apostle's
death : for what man would have had the face to
go to the Churches with a new composition, and

AUTOBIOGRAPHY. 105

say, '' This is a letter of Paul, which you re-
ceived from him during his life-lime, and which
every man, woman, and child among you, have
been perfectly familiar with from the time of the
Apostle to the present day ? The indications
preserved in the Order of Destiny, (which loses
nothing) are so strong, that we are forced to ad-
mit that the Apostle Paul lived in the Apostolic
age, that he was well known in the Churches,
that he wrote letters to the different Churches,
and that these letters were received with great
reverence by these Churches.

The question now arises. Have the letters of
Paul, which we now possess, undergone changes
and mutilations ? The answer is very simple.
The letters are constructed according to so strin-
gent a logical sequence, that any interpolation, in
any part of them, which should contradict the
Apostle's statements, would stand out so evident-
ly that we should be able to point it out, and de-
nounce it, at once. If the interpolation were a
mere amplification of the Apostle's words, run-
ing on in harmony with the even tenor of his logic,
it would be indeed more difficult to discover it ;
but then ii would be a matter of little consequence
whether we discovered it or not.

106 AN A PRIORI

Now Paul's logic all revolves around a single
fact, and the Apostle himself says, if this fact be
not true, that all his preaching is absolutely vain,
and that the faith of all believers is equally vain.
The fact is this : — That the Man Christ
Jesus actually rose from the dead. Paul evident-
ly believed this fact ; and, in one of his epistles,
he states that after Christ was raised from the
dead, he was seen first by Peter, afterward by the
twelve Apostles, then by more than jive hundred
persons at one time, the greater part of which
number were alive at the time he was writing,
able to corroborate his statement, or to deny it.
Would the Apostle have dared to say to the
Churches that there were nearly five hundred per-
sons among them who had seen our Lord after
his resurrection, if no such persons existed ?
We have, therefore, sufficient evidence of the
following facts : (1) That the Apostle really
wrote epistles to the churches, epistles which have
been transmitted to us, (2) That he really
lived at the time he is generally supposed to have
lived, (3) That he, and more than five hundred
others, actually believed they had seen our Lord
after his resurrection, and (4) That there is as
much proof of the actual resurrection of our Lord,
as it is possible that there should be of any histor-
ical event of the nature.

AUTOBIOGRAPHY. 107

Then I came to the practical question of the
application of all this to my own individual case.
I had no fears whatever of failing to find accep-
tance with God, if I sincerely desired it. I had
known from the beginning, this saying of our
Lord, '' He that comeih unto me, I will in no
wise cast out."

But, I asked — Though I live for the rest of my
life in communion with God, what if I am finally
to be damned for what I have already done ? I
answered — What is it to me whether I am to be
damned or not ? The question of my private dam-
nation, is one of altogether minor consequence,
when considered in this connection. I know the
truth of God, and will maintain it, and live by it,
whether I am to be damned or not. Even if I
am to be damned, I will teach others the truth of
God, that they at least may live.

Third Gtrand Epoch. [Realization.]
First sub epoch : — desire in realization.

* « » * *

* * * *

* * * * «

* * This is the form of private
experience which corresponds to the diffusive
expansion that took place in the Christian Church
in the first three centuries of its existence.

Second sub epoch : — reasoning in realization.

« « « • m

* * * *

m * * * m

* * In individual life, this is the

Love Fire, the Virgin Tincture, the final prepa-
10

110 AN A PRIORI

ration for the fullness of the tenth form ; but in the
life of the race, of what certain Theosophists call
ihe GREAT MAN, it is the preparation for the prac-
tical manifestation of the doctrines of the King-
dom of Heaven. The later Fathers, the Scho-
lastic and Modern Philosophies, the Catholic and
Protestant Theologies, all concur, in this sub
epoch, to pave the way for the great consumma-
tion— -for the Unending Dispensation which is
shortly to come.* In this sub epoch the world
now stands : but the eastern sky is red with the
rays of the Sun of the Second Advent : the night
is far advanced, the day is at hand ; and the brass
field-pieces which are about to thunder on every
plain in Europe, are the John the Baptist who
shall prepare the way for the coming of the Lord.
Behold, he cometh with clouds, and all the na-
tions of the earth shall wail because of him !
for all the powers of this world shall be utterly
destroyed, and the might of the Universal Empire
shall be established in their stead.

I will overturn, overturn, overturn, it, saith Jehovah ;
And it shall not stand, until he come whose right

it is ; —
To him will I give it!

* See Note M.

AUTOBIOGRAPHY. Ill

Third sub epoch : — realization in realization.

* * Tn individual life, this is the
entrance into the Holy Ternary, the deliver-
ance of the soul from the triple bondage : in the
life of the race, it is the coming down of the New
Jerusalem from God out of Heaven. The Master
prayed, '' Our Father who art in Heaven, hal-
lowed be thy Name : thy Kingdom come : thy
Will be done, ON Earth as it is in heaven :" —
this prayer of our Lord will be fulfilled. He
prayed also, that his disciples all might be ONE :
'' as thou Father art in me, (he said) and I in
thee, I pray that they may be ONE in us : that
they all maybe ONE, even as we are ONE." —
New light will break forth from the Gospel, and
the NEW CHRISTIANITY* will establish it-
self in the world, — a Christianity as much tran-
scending the one now known in the Churches, as
this last transcends the religion of types and shad-
ows revealed through Moses. ^ ^

# #- # # #

* See Note N.

APPENDIX.

[ A.]

THE SERIES BY SEVENS.*

The Ist Fountain Spirit: — This is a dark
knitting power, secret and hidden ; and is mani-
fested in moral relations, as avarice — not avarice
in its mere relation to money, but a sort of univer-
sal passion, a love of fame, power, pleasure, &c.
not because of their uses, but because of the se-

* The Seven moments or stages, in which the soul passes
from the darkness of its own quality into the light of the
second Principle, are correspondencies of the Seven days, or
epochs, of the Creation of the Material Universe. Accord-
ing to the Theosophists, the soul, which is a living roof
of Fire, is, when considered in itself alone, the abstracted
austere element of Fire, remaining secret and hidden in
its own qaality ; in which quality, as in the glowing coal
the flame whereof is extinct, the dark life bums. The
Theosophists compare the life of the soul to a flame ; and
affirm that when it is confined and turned in upon itself, it
feeds upon itself with a fierce internal fury : this internal
self-consumption is called by them, the lofty Wrath-Fire
of Eternity.

116 APPENDIX.

cret satisfaction derivable from their possession.
It is the harsh ASTRINGENCY, the hidden root
tending to irapenetrabihty, and to the locking up
of itself in itself. It is blind, without knowledge,
caring for nothing but itself, recognizing nothing
but itself, exercising neither attraction nor repul-
sion.

The 2d Fountain Spirit : — This finds its root
in the first, which it begins to vanquish, it is rep-
resented in moral relations by pride, and tends,
in man, to isolation. He who is under its influ-
ence, recognizes his fellows, but not in any love ;
he wishes them neither good nor evil, and cares
for them not at all. By the energy of the first
Fountain, man falls into the hard astringency, and
collects himself in himself, recognizing nothing
which is not himself ; but, by that of the second,
he recognizes other men, though only to assert his
independence, and to isolate himself from them.
The energy of the second Fountain is sweet, mild
and meek, in its action outwardly upon other men,
and manifests itself in connection with the first
under the form of melancholy. For melancholy
comes from the hard astringency, partly subdued
by pride, recognizing and isolating itself. Thus,
because the outward relations are not completed,
the meekness and astringency spend their energy

APPENDIX. 117

upon each other, and the soul becomes a prey to
bitter raging torment. If the bond of the astrin-
gency were not broken, all would be as if in a
dark cold prison ; as stones and dead concrete
matter ; but the proud self-isolating spirit breaks
this austere band, and comes into sad and cold re-
lations with that which is without ; but in the heart
itself, the second Fountain, by its reiSex influence
or energy, works up the astringency into a con-
suming raging fierceness. Thus the austere band
is broken, both as regards the within and the with-
out, or the subjective and the objective.

The 3c? Fountain Sjjirit : — The consuming
fierceness and raging torment, are carried to their
height in this Fountain, which manifests itself in
moral relations in violent desire and envy,
sometimes also in VANITY, and AMBITION. This
is the bitter or anguish Fountain, and tends to
break up the isolation of the two first Fountains.
As the second Fountain is the cause of life, so this
is the cause of distinct perceptions, and of the
thoughts ; for it brings man more into relations
with that which is not himself. If the third Foun-
tain be moved too much, it kindles the second and
the astringent, until all becomes a stinging, burn-
ing poison. The Thosophists say that this is
the spirit of the zealous, jealous, unquenchable

118 APPENDIX.

wrath of God, which is (according to them) in
part also the punishment of the damned. They
afSrm also that the dark spirits are given over to
the anguish of their own souls, desperation and
the raging of hell being introduced into the crea-
tures, like gall into the body : but this, they con-
tinue, is very good for souls under probation, in
stirring up life.

The 4tth Fountain Spirit : — When the raging
torment introduced by the third Fountain becomes
intolerable, then man comes still more into rela-
tions ; fc^r the fire-flash from the anguish, is the
fourth Fountain Spirit, which manifests itself in
moral relations as anger. The whole creation is
actuated by this fourth Fountain, which is the
great propelling force which keeps it in continual
operation.

Man, at this period of his life's development,
finds himself to be fallen among thieves ; and the
theives are these four Fountain Spirits, which
constitute, and are, the foundation of his existence.
Astringency; binding avarice ; uncontrollable pride;
anguish or envy ; fierce, furious anger ; hold the
soul so that it hates light, and every pure spirit
that brings light — so that it loves evil, delighting
in those who practice it. It is murderous, and

I

APPENDIX. 119

isolates itself from the Jight, refusing to believe
that it is light.

Let the philanthropists listen to this : — Who-
ever would bring the love-light which saves, to a
dark spirit shut up in the four first Fountains,
must be prepared to meet with a reception which
agrees with the dark fire nature. Because of the
pridcj the understanding of the fire-spirit is dark-
ened, so that he despises him who brings light ;
because of the astringency^ the fire-spirit will take
from its best friend all that he hath ; because of
the envy^ it is filled with hatred to him that brings
truth ; because of the anger ^ it is dangerous and
violent. It cannot act without exercising these
four Fountains, for these are the fountains and
springs of its life. Whoever, in ancient times,
endeavored to reform the nations which were
sunk in the first four Fountains, or forms of na-
ture, was despised, hated, robbed, crucified, and
slain.

It is stated by an eminent Theosophist, that
the following properties belong to the Fire Ele-
ment, by reason of the four Fountain Spirits,
viz : fierceness, wrathfulness, sternness, sulphu-
rousness, salnitrousness, which consume, devour,
and elevate themselves ; so that this fire essence

120 APPENDIX.

'appears evidently to be a dark, harsh, hard, bitter,
anguishing, fierce, fiery, wrathful, stern, brim-
stony, salnitrous, consuming, self-elevating Fire
Spirit.

The 5th Fountain Spirit: — This is the out-
breaking of the Magia, in concurrence with the
exterior love-light element, tending to overcome
the intolerable anguish of the preceding Fountains,
by transcending them, and entering into a new, a
higher, and a spiritual sphere.

The Qth Fountain Spirit : — Into this form of
nature, all the reasoning of the series by 7s is
thrown. We find in it, therefore, a rapt contem-
plation, lofty speculations on the theory of the
universe, and a forward and daring movement of
genius : this is the form or moment for gigantic
ccsmognies.

The Tth Fountain Spirit : — This is the unifi-
cation of the character, whereby the sensibility,
intelligence, and will, are brought to act in har-
mony— -whereby all the Fountain Spirits are made
to conduce to one perfect life : whereby the
weight and force of the first form, unites itself
with the self-centering dignity of the second, and
this with the springing vitality of the third, and
this last with the fiery energy of the fourth, and

APPENDIX. 121

SO on through the expansive love-fire of the fifth,
and the towering intelligence of the sixth, till they
all meet and wrestle together in joy, for the exalt-
ing of the will of God, in the full harmony of the
seventh.

11

122 APPENDIX.

[B. ]

The List of generations from Adam, through
Cain, to Lamech, is as follows :

1. ADAM.

2. CAIN.

3. ENOCH.

4. IRAD.

5. MEHUJAEL.

6. METHUSAEL.

7. LAMECH.

This list gives us from Adam to Lamech, a
perfect series of Seven terms : and we may no-
tice that Lamech, who appears again in another
symbolical list among the posterity of Shem,
lived exactly 777 years — " and all the days of
Lamech were seven hundred seventy and seven
years : and he died."

Eve had a third son, whom she called Seth,
that is foundation ; because in him God had
founded for her another seed, to replace that of
Abel. The series founded in Seth, gives us a
complete logical series of 9 terms :

1. SETH.

2. ENOS.

3. CAINAN.

APPENDIX. 123

4. MAHALALEEL.

5. JARED.

6. ENOCH.

7. METHUSELAH.

8. LAMECH.

9. NOAH*

Noah had three sons, Shem, Ham, and Japhet.
The sons of Japhet form a regular series of 7s :

1. GOMER.

2. MAGOG.

3. MADAI.

4. JAVAN.

5. TUBAL.

6. MESHECH.

7. TIRAS.

The sons of these, grand-sons of Japhet, as
given in the connection, make another series by
7s.

The sons of Ham, were Cush, Misraim, Phut,
and Canaan : the list of Ham's descendants through
Cush, form a regular series by 7s :

. * The reader will find, in Leroux's treatise of Humani-
ty, article My thus of Adam, a full explanation of the in-
terior meaning of the names which occur in the list of
generations from Adam to Noah.

124 APPENDIX.

1. CUSH.

2. SEBA.

3. HAVILAH.

4. SABTAH.

5. RAAMAH.

6. SABTECHAH.

7. NIMROD.

The descendants of Ham, through Misraim,
form a regular series by 9s :

1. MISRAIM.

2. LUDIM.

3. ANAMIM,

4. LEHABIM.

5. NAPHTUHIM.

6. PATHRUSIM.

7. CASLUHIM.

8. CAPHTORIM.

To which add — 9. PHILISTIM — who is express-
ly mentioned in the connection, as having come
out of Casluhim. — But this is evidently a list of
tribes and races ; and the coming out of Philistim
from Casluhim, is evidently, not a birth, but a
procession forth as a colony.

The descendants of Shem, as was made evident
in the text, form a regular series by 9s.

If we pass to the New Testament, we shall

APPENDIX. 125

find two lists of names, differing from each other,
ahhough each purports to give the genealogy of
our Lord. One of these lists is found in the be-
ginning bf the Gospel of Matthew, the other is
found in the Gospel of Luke. If we count the
names given in the list of Matthew, we find them
to amount — including Abraham and Christ — to
forty one generations. But the list does not
agree with the parallel lists in the Old Testa-
ment ; for example, Matthew says that Ozias was
the son of Joram, while the author of the Chron-
icles tells us that he was the great-great-grandson
of Joram. The insertion of the names from the
book of Chronicles, would lengthen Matthew's
list by three terms, making it to number forty four
generations, instead of forty one. — But we have
neither time nor space to notice the inaccuracies
of this list. The idea which Matthew intended
to convey, is to be found, not in the enumeration
of the names, but in the final summing up. In
the 17th verse of the first Chapter of his Gospel,
he says, " So all the generations from Abraham
to David are 14 generations ; and from David
unto the carrying away into Babylon are 14
generations ; and from the carrying away into
Babylon unto Christ are 14 generations." He is
determined, as is evident from this summing up,
which by no means agrees either with his own list,

11*

126 APPENDIX.

or with those in the Old Testament, to make three
series, of 14 generations each, between Abraham
and Christ. — Now what was the object of Mat-
thew in forcing the Old Testament tables, till they
could be made to enter within certain definite,
and apparently artificial, limits ? It was this : —

Matthew wished to state in a symbolical man-
ner, that our Lord came in the last age of the
dispensation which commenced with Abraham ;
and he looked upon the movement of that dispen-
sation as taking place in 7 distinct epochs ; he
looked upon these epochs as being themselves,
each of them, composed of 7 sub epochs — sev-
en ages, therefore, composed each of them of
seven minor ages ; or 49 sub epochs in all.
We have an illustration in the book of the Rev-
elation, of this manner of conceiving history.
The prophetic account of the dispensation that
was to come, was written, according to the rev-
elator, in a book sealed with 7 seals ; when the
first seal was broken, the first epoch became rea-
lized ; when the second seal was broken, the
second epoch became realized ; and so on to the
seventh seal, where the prophet, desiring to be
more particular, divided the epoch into 7 sub
epochs, writing the history of the opening of the
seventh seal in 7 parts^ each part following the

APPENDIX. 127

sounding of one of the 7 trumpets which were
*given to the angels that stood before God. — Mat-
thew teaches that our Lord opens the seventh
age, the completion of the dispensation in Abra-
ham. He says that between Christ and Abra-
ham, there had been three times fourteen genera-
tions, that is, six times seven generations, that is,
again, that six epochs of 7 terms each, had pass-
ed away, in the Abrahamic dispensation, before
our Lord came ; and that he came to bring in
the seventh age, or last age of that dispenation.

If we pass now to the list given by Luke, and
count from our Lord, through Joseph, to Abra-
ham, we shall find from Isaac to our Lord, inclu-
ding both, just 54 generations ; dividing 54 by
9, we obtain 6 : there were, therefore, just 6
complete series of 9s between Abraham and
Christ. Adding to these 6 series, the series by
9s from Seth (the son of Adam) to Noah, and
that from Shem, through Arphaxad, to Abra-
ham, we have just eight series by 9s. Luke
represents, therefore, our Lord to have appeared
at the end of the eighth epoch of 9s, in a grand
logical series of 9s, commencing at the creation
of the world.

128 APPENDIX.

These lists are symbolical rather than histori-
cal, and are easily reconciled ; for both writers
had the same end in view, and actually wrote the
same thing, viz : that our Lord brought in the
final dispensation, and the last age of the world.
The discrepancies between the lists come from
the fact that Matthew constructed his system by
7s, and included the history of the Abrahamic
dispensation only ; while Luke constructed his
by 9s and included the whole history of the hu-
man race : — the discrepancies between the lists
and those in the Old Testament, deserve no very
serious notice, as they do not affect the symboli-
cal character of the series.

One fact, however, may strike the attention :
the list of Luke has three terms too many, all
of which occur in the series between Adam and
Abraham. Cainaan, who appears between A phax-
ad and Salah, is interpolated — he does not ap-
pear in the original series in the Old Testament.
Seth and Adam, because they indicate mere
points of departure, are not counted in the series
by 9s. Subtracting Adam, Seth, and Cainaan,
there remain exactly 72 generations, or 8 full se-
ries by 9s.

APPENDIX. 129

[C. ]

" This world was involved in darkness, incom-
prehensible to the intelligence, undiscoverable by
the reason, unrevealed, and immersed, as it were,
in all parts, in a sound sleep.

*' Then the great Self-Existing Power, him-
self unseen, but rendering this world visible, with
the five elements, and other principles, manifested
himself in the fullness of his glory, dispelling the
darkness.

'' He whom the spirit alone can perceive, whose
essence escapes the organs of the senses, who
is without visible parts, eternal, the soul of all
being, whom no one can comprehend, unveiled
his own splendor.

" Having resolved to cause the various crea-
tures to emanate from his own substance, at first,
by a thought^ he produced the waters, and placed
in them a productive seed * * * *

'' The waters have been called naras^ because
they were produced by Nara (the Divine Spir-
it) ; and, as these waters were his first place of

130 APPENDIX.

motion (Ayana,) he has thence been named
Narayana, or He that moves upon the Watera.^^
Zatvs of Menu.

''The nature of God is such that he cannot
fall under the observation of the senses : he can
be neither measured, nor divided, and nothing can
resemble him. He is neither fire, nor air, nor
water, nor wind : but all things are by him. For,
being perfect, he has reserved perfection for him-
self alone ; and he has willed to create and ordain

the universe." — Fragment of Hermes Trisme-
gistus.

''God is the first, indestructible, unbegotten,
indivisible, eternal, dissimilar ; the dispenser of
all good ; incorruptible ; the best of the good, the
wisest of the wise. He is the Father of equity
and justice, self-taught, physical, perfect and
wise, and the only inventor of the Sacred Philos-
ophy.

" * * The stable God is called by the Gods
Silent^ and is said to consent with mind, and to
be known by souls through mind alone.

u * * ^ Containing all things in the one summit
of his own thyparxis, he himself subsists wholly
beyond." — Oracles of Zoroaster.

APPENDIX. 131

'' God is one, eternal, immutable, incompre-
'* hensible ; he created and ordained all things
" by his Wisdom, and he sustains and preserves
*' them by his Providence ; he is everywhere,
'' and no place contains him ; he is everything,
'' but is neither of the things which are by him
*' and have received their being from him ; he
'^ hears everything, sees everything, and pene-
*' trates the most secret thoughts; he fills the
'' depths of the abyss, and the immensity of Hea-
*' ven ; — knowledge, welfare, virtue, light, life,
*' these are in him alone, and they are him. He
*Ms, at once, infinitely good, and infinitely just.
'^ He loves men with a peculiar love, and has cre-
*' ated them only that he may make them happy ;
'^ but, since he is holiness and justice themselves,
'^ he renders those happy, and those only, who
^' resemble him through justice and holiness ; and
^' he punishes those who have corrupted the holy
'^ character which he impressed upon them when
" he created them in his own image."

Detached passages from Plato^ hrougJit

together hy Dacier.

132 APPENDIX,

[D. ]

'^ What is then, Socrates, the manner in which
other things partake of IDEAS, since they can
receive them neither partially nor in their totality ?

By Jupiter ! exclaimed Socrates, it appears to
me by no means easy to determine this manner.

But what say you to this ?

To what ?

T imagine you come in this manner to the unity
of each idea : when several things appear great
to you — perhaps, in contemplating them, a single
and same idea seems to you to exist in all these
things, and that is what leads you to think of the
unity of greatness.

That is true, said Socrates.

But what ! if you consider together, with the
same view of your soul, not only greatness in it-
self, but also all the other things which are great,
will you not see a new unity of greatness, which
makes, by necessity, all these things to appear
great.

So it would seem.

There will appear to you, then, another idea
of greatness, besides greatness in itself and the

APPENDIX. 133

things which partake of it ; and, above all these,
a new idea which will communicate greatness to
them all ; so that each idea would cease to be
one in your eyes, and would become multiple to
infinity.

But, Parmenides, observed Socrates, each of
these ideas is perhaps a thought, which can be
conceived to exist in no place more easily than
in the soul ; in this case, at least, each idea would
preserve its unity, and would be no longer liable
to the objections you have just made.

What then ! replied Parmenides, each of these
thoughts is one, but is the thought a thought of
nothing ?

That is impossible.

Is it the thought of something ?

Yes.

Of something which is, or of something which
is not ?

Of something which is.

Of something that is one, which this thought
conceives in all things as a real form ?

Without doubt.

Well ! is not this, which is thought with such
a character of unity, an idea, since it is always
the same in all things ?

That, again, appears to follow necessarily.
12

134 APPENDIX.

But, continued Parmenides, if all other things
appear to you to partake of ideas, does it not also
appear to be necessary, either, that everything
should be formed of thoughts, and that everything
should think, or, that everything should be
thought, but deprived of the faculty of thinking ?

That is nonsense, replied Socrates. But this,
Parmenides, if I am not mistaken, is the proba-
ble truth : it is that ideas subsist as models of na-
ture^ and that other things become like them, and
are their copies, and that things partake of ideas
only by bearing a resemblance to those ideas.

If any object, said Parmenides, resembles an
idea, is it possible that the idea should not bear a
likeness to that which is formed in its image, so
far as it resembles it, or is it possible that the like
should be unlike the like ?

It is not.

Is there not a vehement necessity that the like
v^ith its like should partake of one and the same
idea ?

Most assuredly.

That by the participation of which things are
caused to be like, is it not the idea ?

Exactly.

It is therefore impossible that anything should
be like its idea^ or that an idea should be like any

APPENDIX. 135

other thing : for, otherwise, besides the idea,
there would always appear another idea ; and, if
this last should resemble anything, there would be
still another ; and new ideas would forever con-
tinue to manifest themselves, if we suppose the
idea capable of becoming like the thing which
partakes of it.

That is very true.

It is not^ thereforcyby means of resemblance
that other things partake of ideas ^ and we must
seek for some other process of participation.

So it appears.

You see, therefore, O Socrates, the difficulty
which besets the way of him who affirms the ex-
istence of absolute ideas.

Perfectly." Plato: — The Parmenides.

136 APPENDIX.

[E. ]

'' I pass to China. B7 the side of Confucius,
I find Bouddha under the name of Fo, and Lao-
Tseu. Now Bouddha is (h'ke Vischnou) an in-
carnation of the Divine Word; and Lao -Tseu is
the doctrine itself, or the metaphysics, of this
Word, this creative Logos. The Taote-king^
the book of Lao-Tseu, speaking of the Divine
Reason, of the Logos of Plato, of the Word of
the Christians — of the Narayana of India, in a
word — represents it as saying : — '' 1 was before
'^ the manifestation of any corporeal form : I ap-
'^ peared before the Supreme beginning : I ope-
'^ rated at the source of the as yet unorganized
^' matter : I was present at the development of
'' the first great mass, and moved in the midst of
'^ the empty space. '^ Can you not find here,
both the Brahma Word of the Vedas, which mo-
ved on the waters before the creation, and the
Spirit of God of the Bible, which brooded on the
waters before the same creation ?

***** What term does St. John make use
of to designate this Son of God who is God,
this Reason of God which he distinguishes from
God, and which makes of the man Jesus, the

APPENDIX. 137

Christ ? He calls it Logos : and Plato — what
name does he give to the Divine Reason which
he also distinguishes in God ? He calls it, in
like manner, Logosy or J^ous (reason). And
Lao-Tseu and his followers, how do they name
this Divine Reason which was anterior to the ere*
ation, and the cause of the creation ? They also
call it the Reason of God, Tao.

" Shall I recall to your mind the astonishment
that was expressed by our learned men when they
found the ideas of Pythagoras and Plato, in the
Tao'te-king 9 How, they asked, could such
a communication have taken place ? Whence
came these analogies ? Did Lao-Tseu borrow his
doctrines from the Greek Philosophers, or did
the Greek Philosophers borrow theirs from Lao-
Tseu ? Learned orientalists, the thing is not so
astonishing as you think ! For it is not Lao-Tseu
alone, and Plato, who have known these doc-
trines ; this metaphysics was known to all the na-
tions of remote antiquity.

'' But we ought to compare the doctrines of Lao-
Tseu with Chiistianity, rather than with Pytha-
goras and Plato. For neither Pythagoras, nor
Plato, nor their disciples, anthropomorphized the
Divine Word as did the disciples of Lao-Tseu,

12*

138 APPENDIX.

and the disciples of Jesus Christ. The Chinese
Legend relating to Lao-Tseu is in part translated
for lis : — after repeating the axiom of the Tao-te-
king, that '' The Tao, or the Word, was the
' great ancestor of the subtle and primordial ele-
' ments, thie organizer of the earth and the heav-
' ens ; who took root in the supreme repose and
' the supreme void, before the great origin (the
^ creation) ; who dispersed the elements in space,
' and dissipated the darkness," the Sacred Le-
gend adds : '' He has transformed his person by
' taking upon himself a mortal body ; he has
^ partaken of all the destinies of this world of
^ mud and dust. He appeared in the world as a
' great sage ; he observed the righteous and the
' wicked through succeeding generations, and
^ established his doctrines according to the times.
' He has been, in the order of the times, the
' great teacher of the generations. He appeared
' among men, but did not resemble the crowd of
' men among whom he was counted." Pierre
Lero ux . — Christianity .

APPENDIX. 189

[ F. ]

''No one will fear to affirm that the power of
self-motion forms the essence and the attribute of
the soul : for that which receives motion from an
exterior cause, is not alive ; while that which
internally gives motion to itself, is alive." Pla-
to,— The Phcddrus,

^^ The Athenian, Since we have attained to
this point, answer to this ?

Clinias. To what ?

The Athenian, When the first kind of move-
ment is found in any substance whatever, earthy,
watery, fiery, simple, or composite, how shall we
say that this substance is affected ?

Clinias. Do you not ask if we should say of
this substance, that it is alive, when it thus moves
itself?

The Athenian. Yes, if it is alive ?

Clinias, Without doubt.

The Athenian, But what ! when we see liv-

140 APPENDIX.

ing substances, must we not recognize that the
vital principle in them is soul itself ?*

Clinias, It can be no other thing." Plato* —
Xth, book of the Laws,

* Evidently not individual soul, however, but what Wal-
do Emerson calls the Over- Soul; for, otherwise, the argu-
ments for immortality, from which these passages are ex-
tracted, would be simply and plainly absurd.

APPENDIX. 141

[€-. ]

'' Moses said to Adam, as they were disputing
'' before God, Thou art Adam, whom God cre-
'' ated and animated with the breath of life, and
" caused to be worshiped by the angels, and
'' placed in Paradise, from whence mankind have
'' been expelled for thy fault. Whereto Adam
" answered. Thou art Moses, whom God chose
'' for his Apostle, and intrusted with his w^ord,
'^ by giving thee the tables of the law, and whom
'^ he vouchsafed to admit to discourse with him-
'' self. How many years dost thou find the law
'' was written before I was created ? Says Moses,
'' Forty. And dost thou not find, replied Adam,
" these words therein — And Adam rebelled
" against his Lord, and transgressed ? Which
'' Moses confessing. Dost thou therefore blame
*' me, continued he^ for doing that which God
'' wrote of me that I should do, forty years be-
'^ fore I was created ; nay, for w^hat was decreed
'' concerning me forty thousand years before the
'^ creation of heaven and earth ?"

We meet the difficulty stated in the foregoing
Mahometan parable, by denying first of all, and

142 APPENDIX.

in the front, the whole doctrine of the DiviKE
Fore-knowledge.

Where is the Theologian who will hesitate to
affirm that God dwells in a timeless present, an
eternal now ? Time had its birth among the
changes and mutations of nature, and there only-
can it have a present existence : but, because
God created nature, he transcends all nature ;
and, because he transcends all nature, he tran-
scends all TIME. God lives in eternity — not an
eternity which is time stretched out till it becomes
immeasurable, and which still admits of the rela-
tions of before and q/ier, but an eternity which
altogether transcends time. With God there is
neither /ore-knowledge nor a/ier-knowledge. If it
be unlawful to attribute memory and imagination
to God, if it be unlawful to say that he recollects
past events, reproducing them to his mind, is it
not equally unlawful to attribute to him the faculty
of fore-knowledge ? Can he possess fore-knowl-
edge without possessing memory, seeing that
these are correlatives of each other, and that the
possession of either of them, would subject him to
all the conditions of time ? God created time
when he created the worlds, and if there were no
worlds, there would be no time : will any one
say that God cannot exist without the worlds ?

APPENDIX. 143

God, indeed, KNOWS all events, even those
which, to uSj are yet veiled in the future, but this
knowledge is present knowledge, and neither /ore-
knowledge, nor a/ier-knowledge.

The fact of God's perfect knowledge of all our
actions, if it militate at all against our freedon],
must do it in one or the other of the two ways
which follow : — either (1) God computes the or-
der of Destiny, and sees in operation a chain of
causes and effects which will render every act
of our lives necessarily what it will be, and not
otherwise ; and, seeing this chain, he knows pre-
cisely what the future course of our lives will be :
in which case, our actions are supposed to be
determined, not in any way by his knowledge, but
by the force of Destiny ; or (2) God knows our
actions because he himself determines them, be-
cause he makes them to be as they are, because,
in fine, his knowledge is a mere consequence of
his creative power. Let us examine these hy-
potheses separately.

(1) The first hypothesis begs the whole ques-
tion ; for God, when he computes the order of
Destiny, may very well take into the calculation
those modifications of that order which result
from the intervention of the Will of Man. If it

144 APPENDIX.

be granted that the determination of our actions
is effected by powers independent of the Will of
God, whose operation God contemplates, where
is the necessity for denying that the Will of Man
is one of those powers ? Is there any reason to
deny that God can contemplate the operation of
Man's Will, as well as the operation of other pow-
ers ? Moreover, we learn, from observation in
consciousness, that the Will of Man does actually
operate. The mere fact of God's knowing all
our actions, no more interferes with our liberty in
performing those actions, than would the fact of
any individual man's possessing the same knowl-
edge.

(2) The second hypothesis is a mere reproduc-
tion, in a different form, of the theory that God
creates all things out of nothing, and that there is
no operation in the world which is not the mediate
ov immediate operation of the Divine WilL
What evidence have we that God created all
things out of nothing ? —

Verily, none at all ! No one can pretend that
the theory of the creation out of nothing, has a
foundation in Scripture. It is indeed written
that ''God created the heavens and the earth,"
but where is it written that he created them out of
nothing 9 '' The Hebrew uses the word bara,

APPENDIX. 146

to Jorm^ to bring into order ^ to signify creation ^
having no word which accurately expresses crea-
tion out of nothing. ^^ — Robimon^s Calmet. It is
somewhat singular that Moses should be made, by
the Theologians, to teach a doctrine which he
could not have taught even if he had desired so to
do. How could Moses have taught that the
worlds were created out of nothing, when there
was no expression in the language he used capable
of conveying such an idea ? Why did not the
Hebrews, if, as the Theologians say, they be-
lieved in a creation out of nothing, invent some
word, or at least some circumlocution, to express
so important a conception ? But is there any
evidence whatever that the notion of a creation
out of nothing ever entered the head of Moses,
or the head of any other ancient Hebrew ? If
they had any such notion, they preserved a very
mysterious silence in relation to it, and it is cer-
tainly very useless to speculate concerning the
private opinions of Moses — those of which he did
not see fit to give any indication whatever in his
books. —

But the author of the epistle to the Hebrews

says : '' By faith we understand that the worlds

•* were framed by the Word of God, so that the

** things which are seen were not made of those

13

** v^llldlv do appear."— This passage, so far from
sfatihg dial the worlds v^ere made out of nothings
s^ys that the things which are seen were made of
tlicisewhidh are unseen, the visible from the invis-
iBle. Let lis' dbiiipare this passage with a par-
allel passage from one of ihel sacred books of
Kidia : — ^^ They who are acquainted with day
*' and night, know that a day of Brahma is a
''thousand revolutions of the Yoogs, and that his'
*' liight extendeth for a thousand more. On the
''coming forth of that day, all things proceed^
" ft*om invisibility to visibility ; so, on the ap-
^^ firoach of night, they are all dissolved away
" ihto'that which is called inmii/e. The uni-
" Vefse, even, having existed, is again dissolved";
" a'hd now again, on the approach of day, it is'
*'' reproduced. That which, on the dissolution*
''of all things else, i^ not destroyed, is superior,
'"' d'tid of atibther nature ffoih that TJi^ibility ; \t\r
^hvisibl^ iM eternal;^"

* Let us lay down two classes of being, the seen and the
unseen : the unseen, eternal in their relations ; the s^eii\*
never the same, but ever changing." Plato. — The Ph(B-
don. , . . ^ .,,.. , . . , :^

The Apostle Paul says, in his epistle to the Cofihihi-
a'ftS'," "We aim ri6t at the things w^hich ate seen-, but at the
thinffs which are unseen : for the things which are seen
are temporal, but the things which are uhs^'en are et^r-
rtaa:"

APPENDIX. 1^7

Will it be said that the writer had no relations
with India, and therefore could not have borrowed
the technical language of its religious philosophy ?
Unfortunately, the Platonists, with whose doc-
trines the writer was unquestionably acquainted,
used the terms, the visible and the invisible^ the
seen and the unseen^ in precisely the way tliey
were used in India.

I

148 APPENDIX.

[H. 1

The affirmation that God created the worlds
OUT OP NOTflma, annihilates itself :

For, if God created them out of nothing, their
creation was evidently possible to him. This
possibility existed as a necessary condition of the
creation, before the worlds were created ; for, had
the creation not been possible, it is evident that
it would never have taken place. The possibility
existed, therefore, in the logical order (for we
have nothing to do here with chronology) prior to
the creation. — This possibility was not created,
but existed prior to the very first act of creation ;
for, if it was created, its creation was possible, and
this new possibility preceded the creation of the
created possibility, else that creation could not
have taken place. This possibility of a possibili-
ty, if it was created, must have been preceded
by still another possibility, and thus, by continuing
the hypothesis, we fall upon an infinite series —
an evident sign of the absurdity of the supposi-
tion.

APPENDIX. 149

Therefore the creation of the worlds was pre-
ceded by the possibility of that creation, and this
possibility was itself uncreated.

The very first act of the Divine Will must
have been preceded by the possibility of that act,
else it could not have taken place. This possi-
bility is independent of the Divine Will, for it is
anterior to the very first act of that Will, and is,
indeed, that upon which the operation of the Di-
vine Will depends.

It is evident, therefore, that two Powers cpn^
curred in the creation of the Worlds, (1) Tfee
Divine Will, and (2) That which made the cre-
ation of the Worlds, and the operation of the Di-
vine Will, possible.

God, therefore, is not only the voluntary causae
of the existence of the universe, he is also the
eminent cause ; and be knows the things which
are made, partly by perceiving them in the opera-^
tions of his Will, and partly by perceiving them in.
Himself as eminent cause.

The soul of man has its root of being, not in
the Divine Will, but in God as eminent cause;
for the Soul, as is made ev^Tdejt in the text, tr^nr

13^

150 APPENDIX,

scends all time so far as its essence is concerned,
and therefore never began to be, and never can
cease lo be — that is, it is uncreated. The possi-
bilily of the Soul's existence, is indeed that root
of substance, hid in God as ennnent cause, which
is the essential being of the soul.

The Divine Will depends, for its ability to op-
erate, upon its possibility inhering in the very
Being of God, and the Will of Man depends also,
for its ability to operate, upon i'/^ possibility, inher-
ing in the same Being of God : the Will of Man,
therefore, having its ground and root in the soul's
substance, is dependent upon the Being, but not
upon the Will of God. God sees all our actions
in himself; he sees our subjective movements in
himself as eminent cause, and he sees the ope-
ration of the circumstances which act upon us in
bis Will : and thus he sees us as free agents, be-
ings capable of acting in opposition to his will —
beings whose actions he cannot control by his
Will, because those actions have their origin in
regions of Divine Essence as ancient and as re-
mote as is the source of the Divine Will iiself :
beings whose actions he cannot control by his
Will, because the Will of God is subsequent in the
order of nature to the sublime ground which is the
spring of the activity of the human soul.

APPENDIX. 151

Thus the doctrine of a creation out of nothing,
defeats iiself ; for it is equivalent to the doctrine
that aH creation is effected by the leading forth of
visible things, through the energy of the Divine
Will, from POTENTIALITY inio actuality. God
brings forth, according to his Will, fronn potenti-
ality into actuality, just what he pleases ; but
when any human soul is brought into actual rela-
tions, it acts from itself, independently of God's
Will, for it acts from an origin transcending
God's Will. — God may drive any human soul
back into potentiality, that is, may destroy its life,
but while he suffers it to live, he cannot alter its
will by any direct exertion of power. If he
wishes to alter its will, he must change the cir-
cumstances which surround it, or change its bodily
conditions. In short, he cannot change the sub-
jective action of the soul, and, if he wish to change
its life, he must do it by changing the objective
element with which it concurs, or by changing the
instrument by which the concurrence is effected.

Thus there are two orders of Will operating in
the world, the Will of God, and the Will of
Man, and these, because of the Divine Ground
in the Still Eternity of their spring and origin,
are independent of each other. Three powers,
therefore, govern the movement of all things in

152 APPENDIX.

the world : (1) Providence or the Will of God,
(2) The Will of Man, (3) Destiny. The first
two of these powers are uncreated ; the last is a
created power.

Is this Pantheism ? Nay, is it not the doc-
trine which truly and especially avoids all Pan-
theism ? Atheism sinks the Will of God, and the
Will of Man, in the movement of Destiny : Pan-
theism sinks Man and Nature in the Will of God :
and New England Transcendantalism sinks God
and Nature in Man. The true doctrine must be
sought in a Synthesis of the operation of the three
great Powers.

'' In the whole world (says Zoroaster) shineth
a Triad, over which a Monad rules." [3+1=4]

" Meditate (says Pythagoras) on the principles
I have given you, strive to put them in practice,
learn to love them. They will conduct you to-
ward divine virtue ; I swear it by him who has
transmitted into our souls the HoLY QuATERNARYj
source of eternal nature,^ ^

APPENDIX. 153

[I.]

Man is a Soul and a Body, which are united
in the movement of the present terrestrial Life.
It is necessary, if we would attain to the compre-
hension of the present condition of our Lives,
that we should follow up, not only the movements
of Spiritual progress and transition which are
preserved for us in our memories, but also the
terms of the Serial progression of animated exis-
tence : for this progression furnishes us the key of
our present Physical constitution. Man is neith-
er a Soul, nor a Body, but a Soul and a Body,
which are one in the unity of the terrestrial Life.

*' I pray (says the Apostle) that your whole
Spikit (or Life), and Soul, and Body, may be
preserved blameless," &c.

154 APPENDIX.

[J. ]

Life may be well represented, in rnathenDail-
cal language, as a function of two variables :
LiFE=/(a?, y.) Let x represent the Free Soul,
and y the circumstances furnished by Destiny,
If X remain constant while y varies, the Life will
derive its whole character from the movement of
Destiny — this is the condition of animal life; if t/
remain constant while x varies, the life will derive
its whole character from the free action of the
vital principle — this is the life which we sometimes
suppose the angels to possess. In human life,
both X and y vary at every moment ; thus our life
is on one side free, and on the other necessitated l
and every one of our acts of life, is at once free
and determined.

APPENDIX. 156

[K. ]!

When we see a stone fall, we do not say it is
alive ; for we know that it does not move itself.
If, however, we should see a stone move, first in
one direction, and then in another, in a manner to
convince us that it moved by virtue of a power
within itself, capable of originating motion, we
should say, at once, that it was alive. A stone
falls, however, by reason of the general force of
gravitation.

All motion must be originated by a Living
Being, for, though it may be communicated by
contact, it certainly cannot originate itself. The
motion of the Universe, which involves all crea-
tures in its course, from the immense planets to
the minutest insect that dwells in a drop of water,
and which is too great to have been originated by
any of the parts, is, rightly considered, a sufficient
proof of the existence of a Living God. The
power of gravitation may move a stone, but it is
God who originates the power of gravitation.

156 APPENDIX.

[!.•]

The mind of the Father said that all things
should be cut into three. His will assented, and
immediately all things were cut.

The Father mingled every spirit from this
Triad.

All things are governed in the bosom of this
Triad.

All things are governed and subsist in these
three.

For you may conceive that all things serve these
three principles.

For in the whole world shineih a Triad, over
which a Monad rules. — Oracles of Zoroaster.

APPENDIX. 157

[M. ]

'^ The age of gold^ wJiich^ until no7Vy a blind tra-
dition has placed in the past^ is before us. The
future shows itself to the eyes of the nations^ not
as a dangerous rock, but as a harbor. Until now,
men have always bequeathed the love and admi-
ration of the past to their descendants. Tor-
mented with a desire for happiness which it seem-
ed impossible to realize on the earth as it is, they
turned their thoughts to the past, or toward
Heaven. They consoled themselves with chi-
meras. But, in spite of its leaders, of its moral-
ists, of its artists, of its poets, the human race
has grown stronger from day to day ; it has de-
veloped itself in a slow, but continuous advance.
It has shown to its false prophets, it has revealed,
so to say, to itself, that the ages have not been
lost for it, and that it has reason to hope for a fu-
ture which shall be far more glorious than the
times of its infancy. Society, since it has ex-
isted, has never made a single step backward.
Its development has sometimes been retarded, but
no power of man has ever been able to stop it.
Let us leave the past to itself, for we have preach-

14

IBS Ai>iPMi>ix.

ed a sufficient number of long and beautiful funeral
orations over it. Let us not despise, but learn
how to appreciate it ; for it has brought us to our
present condition, and it opens before us an easy
road toward a most glorious future. But let us
keep our eyes always turned toward the future.
Let us advance, according to the fine expression
of an ancient poet, as a single JUan^ inscribing
on our pacific banners : (he Terrestrial Paradise
is htfore us !

^^Hm^i Ae Saint Simula.

APPENDIX, 16a

[]V. ]

*'The Fathers of the Church believed — and
not without some appearance of reason — that the
heathen derived their notions of the mystery e^
the Divine Nature from the Sacred Scriptures,
from Moses and the Prophets. But to maintafn
such a proposition at the present day, now that
we possess the sacred books of India, would be
the height of folly. The idea of God — Father,
Son, and Holy Spirit — is the same with the idea
of Being, as it is explained in the Indian Meta-
physics : and will you maintain that the Jews, who
had no metaphysical science, who have left us no
treatise in this department, were the original in-
ventors of this theology ? How could the Tndianai
have borrowed their theology from the Jews,
when it is evident that this theology is the mqr^
result, and logical consequence, of theifowp picjt-
aphyisics ?

*^ I tell you that it is through Egypt and Plato,
that the doctrine of the Word made its ^ntraqce
into Christianity — has become Christianity. ThJl

160 APPENDIX.

truth is so certain, 1 may say so evident, ibat I
cannot understand how any one can have the face
to deny it.

'' I tell you, morover, that all the different re-
ligions are identical, when you examine ihem in
their metaphysical foundations, and that they dif-
fer only in form. I tell you that the Word of the
Christians, is the Word of Plato, the Word of the
Polylheists, the Word of Lao-Tseu, the Word
of the Egyiians, the Word of the Indians. I tell
you that this notion of the Word, or rather of the
Trinity, or, to use the language of the Christian
Fathers, of the three hypostases of God, is the
foundation of all metaphysics, and consequently of
all philosophy, and of all religion. To understand
the Life of the mc, of the individual being, and
thence to raise ourselves to the knowledge of our
relations with the Being of beings, to the knowl-
edge of our destiny, and of our immortality, that
is the true field of religion. To believe, therefore^
God to be at once one and triple^ because loe find
this unity and this triplicity in every manifestation
of Life^ whether in ourselves, or in external na-
ture, that is what is imposed upon us as the very
foundation of religion

* * * *

*' Admit, therefore, as you must, that w^e have,
from this day forward, the right to conclude, solely

I

APPENDIX. 161

from history, and independently of any purely
metaphysical demonstration, that the Christians
are not the only persons who have known the true
nature of God !

'' Now if other men have known it before them,
how can you cut off these other men, as you do,
from the religious tradition ? Do you dare to say
that ihey have known the true nature of God, and
that they have, notwithstanding, not known the
true religion ?

'' Behold how incomplete and false is your tra-
dition, hmiied, as it is, to the Jewish-Christian
line ! Take away in thought from the human
race, as you attempt to do from the true religion,
India, Chaldea, Persia, and Egypt, take away
Pythagoras and Plato, and say, if you dare, that
Christianity could have been established, that
Christianity would have been possible ! It would
be like taking from a river, not only its source,
but also all the tributaries which enrich it.

'' On the contrary, restore to India, to Persia,
to Egypt, to the Greek Philosophy, all that
Christianity has borrowed from them, and say if
there will remain to Christianity any thing it can

162 APPENDIX.

call its own,* that is to say, anything whose germ
did not pre-exist in humanity.

4c * * * * 'pjjg jjg^jg Qf religion is eternal, for
that basis is the subjective knowledge we possess

* Leroux goes too far, when he says Christianity hasj
nothing it can call its own. It is now generally admitted,
we confess, that there is no nooral or religious precept
whatever, written down in the gospels, which was not
expressed and written down, centuries before our Lord
appeared in the world. It is evident, therefore, that
Christianity is not original^ so far as its morals are con-
cerned. Again, we think it will we established that our
Lord taught no metaphysical doctrine which was not
known to the Philosophers before became — if this be done,
it will be evident that Christianity is not original, so far
as its metaphysical doctrine is concerned. Nevertheless
Christianity is the true religion, the religion established
on earth at the consummation of the time, by the direct in-
terposition of Providence. Wherein then, consists its
originality 1 It consists in this : our Lord came, not a^
a mere teacher of Metaphysics and Morality, but as a.
Saviour — he came to save such as were lost. He brought
a power and a Divine Life from the Father, which he com-
municates to those who believe in him. Men could under-
stand the doctrine of Life w ithout the crucifixion of Christ,
but it was not enough to understand it ; men were hunger-
ing and thirsting for the reception of the Divine Life, and
it was not enough for them to know they were dying —
they required the bread which cometh down from heaven.
Our Lord came, and proclaimed to the world : '* As the
Living Father hath sent me, and i live ry the
Father, so he that eateth me spiritually, even he
SHALL LIVE BY ME. John vi. 56. and this proclamation
has been verified to every one that has gone to Christ, for
from him is transmitted the Divine Life.

APPENDIX. i68

of Life : but the objective manifestation which
resuhs from this basis, is variable, and changes
according to the progress of our knowledge.

'' Will you maintain that religion can be the
same throughout the ages ! ! ! Can man, in all
the periods of civilization, have the same objective
knowledge of God and of himself! But, in this
case, we would always have the same man ! If
you. Catholic, should think identically of God and
eternal life, as a Christian of the first century
would have thought, you would be neither more
nor less than a Christian of the first century, and
you would not be a man of our times. *

* * * * *

cc

Thanks to eighteen hundred years of eflx)rts
and sufferings, we are beginning to bring matter
under our control, to use it as a servant ; the
forces of nature begin to be subjected lo us, and
we foresee the moment when the struggle of
Man against nature, shall be terminated by the
victory of intelligence. How can we, like the
Christians, anathematize the world and nature,
seeking an insipid life independently of the con-
ditions of the world ? A man who, like St.
Paul, and all the apostles, should preach enthusi-

164 APPENDIX.

astically the doctrine of the immediate end of the
world, would be not only laughed at, but treated
as a madman.'*" Pierre Leroiix. — Christianity,

1'

It is probable that Leroux never heard of Father Miller.

4

Deacidified using the Bookkeeper process.

Neutralizing agent: Magnesium Oxide ^

Treatment Date: April 2005

PreservationTechnologies

A WORLD LEADER IN PAPER PRESERVATION

1 1 1 Thomson Park Drive
Cranberry Township, PA 16066
(724)779-2111

i